Secrets In The Dark
by Jovianokami
Summary: Arriving on a dark, rainy night a stranger arrives and vows to take over the city to avenge his kind. His sister is already an important member of Megakat City's defence but you'll be surprised when you learn who she really is.Beware: violence, death, sex
1. Prologue

**Prologue **

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Author's Note: Here's a dark story with a different kind of twist. Hope you like it. Ulyferal is acting as my beta for this story.

Dark clouds spread themselves over a large metropolis known as Megakat City. They blocked the moon and stars making the night an inky blackness except for the bursts of lightning streaking across the sky at irregular intervals followed by rumbling, window shaking thunder. 

It felt like an omen of evil as rain began to pour down in sheets like the sky itself was crying in fear. Through this maelstrom, a cross-country bus struggled to navigate the wet slick highway into the city bringing newcomers wanting to start a new life and heading for the terminal to pick up Kats wanting to leave this city under siege from super criminals.

The driver leaned closer to his windshield hoping in vain to see the road a little better through the spattering rain that the windshield wipers was barely dealing with. He would be glad to reach the terminal. It was some time after midnight and this was his last run for the night until he left again in the morning. He took a quick glance in the rearview mirror at the single passenger he still had aboard. The Kat had dark brown fur and had short black hair with golden eyes that held a strange glint in them. He didn't know why, but the stranger made him uneasy and sent a shiver up his spine. He would be very glad to dump this guy at the terminal.

Turning his wipers to max he was relieved to see the terminal finally loom in the darkness. He swung the huge bus in a sharp turn and pulled into his usual spot. "Megakat City, last stop," He called then climbed off quickly so that he didn't have to deal with the stranger.

The stranger slipped his backpack over one shoulder and debarked. He squinted against the rain as he walked down from the terminal ramp to a bus stop. He was fairly soaked by the time an empty city bus finally pulled up. He climbed aboard and dropped a bus token into the slot and took a seat a short distance from the driver.

The city bus driver was tired. It was the end of his shift and he was ready for home. He was glad he didn't have anyone waiting at home so he could just grab a bite and flop in front of the TV. The last passenger was a bit strange. He looked into his rearview mirror for a moment and met a cold, scary pair of eyes. A chill ran down his spine and he swallowed nervously.

'Woah! What a creepy guy!' He thought uneasily.

His route took him through a half dozen stops but the passenger didn't seem inclined to get off. This made the driver even more nervous. Finally, though, the stranger seemed to have seen something through the window and reached for the cord. 

The driver brought the bus to a smooth stop and the passenger shouldered his dark backpack and came forward and took two steps down the steps then stopped before getting off, to look back up at the driver with those scary eyes. This made the driver even more nervous. Something just wasn't right about this Kat. Everything in him said this stranger was dangerous in some way.

"Is s-s-something w-w-wrong, sir?" He asked, so rattled he actually stuttered.

The 'kat' suddenly smirked and it wasn't nice. It had an evil twist to it.

"You're afraid of me aren't you?" The 'Kat' drawled slowly in a voice that could freeze water.

"Uh...n-n-no sir! I…" The driver tried to deny but was interrupted by the stranger.

"Liar. You are afraid...that's good. It means you know when there are dangerous creatures around." The 'Kat' said with that evil smirk still twisting his lips. He looked away a moment before turning back and saying, "I would have let you live if you had told the truth but since you didn't...you will be the first victim from my kind to be visited on yours."

The driver never got the chance to scream as a high powered jolt of electricity was sent through his body, killing him instantly. Even dead, the body still twitched then burned. The stranger didn't cease his attack until the unfortunate victim was totally crisped. Pleased with himself, the stranger stepped the rest of the way off the bus and walked into the rain.

He walked back down the street toward a house he'd seen through the bus window. He was even more soaked then before. He turned his head up toward the sky and smiled.

"So, this city is used to the strange and bizarre. That's a good sign. Then they won't notice when they are overrun by another race until its too late." He said aloud in amusement. He stopped at the house and studied it a moment in the rain and gloom.

It was abandoned, the paint was peeling and the roof needed repair. The lawn was nothing but dirt and the door was hanging open. Still smiling he walked up the crumbled sidewalk and through the door. He closed it behind him and dropped his backpack onto the dirty floor. There was no carpet, only a dark and pitted wood floor. The windows were so grimy you couldn't see out of them. Everywhere you looked was decay and despair.

"I'm home." He proclaimed loudly with a pleased look at his new abode.

His voice echoed eerily around him. He had returned to the city of his birth. His smile vanished as he remembered his past. His family was in shreds. Father and mother were dead...killed by the one he hunted down and killed. His twin sister had vanished somewhere in this benighted city. But the last straw was when Kat kind had killed his mate. The reason was for money! They had killed her even though she had done what they had asked her to do...they still killed her. Fury, anguish and hatred had consumed his soul since that terrible time and now he was back.

"Amy." He whispered his mate's name before turning his golden eyes to the window to stare out into the dark night. "My kind will no longer be persecuted. We will take over this city and enslave them to our will just as they had done to us long ago." He swore.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Author's Note: Here's a dark story with a different kind of twist. Hope you like it. Ulyferal is acting as my beta for this story.

As morning spread its light over the city, chasing away the dark clouds and rain of the night before, the katizens of this great city awakened to another day. In a middle class apartment building near city center, a she-kat slowly awakened to the shrilling sound of her alarm clock. Her paw reached out searching sleepily for the annoying thing, managing more by luck, to slap the off button. She lay there staring at the ceiling for a minute before yawning then tossing the bedding off.

Sitting up, she ran a paw through her shoulder length black hair and blinked her eyes owlishly for a moment before climbing out of bed and making for the bathroom. After a hot shower and a thorough drying, she stood before her mirror. Wiping its surface of steam, her golden eyes stared at her reflection a moment then she muttered an incantation and the image of a beautiful she-kat vanished and in its place a square jawed, short buzz cut, powerful looking male stood staring at himself a moment before heading back to the bedroom to dress.

The male illusion was well known to the katizens of Megakat City as one of its important defenders. Walking to her closet the faux male pulled out a familiar uniform and began to dress quickly. The closet was divided into his and her clothing depending on what persona she was deciding to be that moment. Anyone who cared to peek into her bedroom would only assume the formidable individual had a girl friend when the truth was far more startling. 

Checking the time she grabbed her wallet and car keys, pulled on her great coat, then stepped out of her apartment, locking the door. Taking the elevator, she headed down to the parking garage and her car. Soon she was wending her way through the constipated morning traffic to Enforcer Headquarters.

Parking in her spot in front of the building, she made her way up the massive stairs to the huge front doors, nodding to the grave shift enforcers departing for the day as she made her way to the bank of elevators, stepping into an arriving car and hitting the button for the top floor.

Reaching her office, the Chief Enforcer of the city hung her coat up and walked to her desk to begin work on the endless stream of reports that crossed her desk. Just as she began to read the first report of the morning her second in command came in. All the officer saw as he approached the desk was a powerful and intimidating male.

"What do you want, Steele?" Feral growled out not taking his eyes off his work.

"Sir, I have a report about a strange murder that occurred last night." Steele said handing the report to him.

He took the report and began to read it over. The victim had been a kat named Derek Anderson, a male in his late thirties found this morning by a passerby on their way to work. He had been found on the bus he drove as a City Transit Driver. Cause of death was electrical shock that had burned enough of the victim that identification was nearly impossible. What was strange, when the area had been searched there was no sign of a possible lightning strike, no evidence of an electrical short in the vehicle or downed power line striking the bus, nor was there any indication that a taser or laser weapon might have been used since the injures were not consistent with those types of devices. The coroner's tentative diagnoses was death by unknown causes.

The report stated the investigating officers were waiting for the coroner's final report and CSI investigation, and they were in the process of back tracking the victim to see if he met with foul play. It reported the security tape enclosed had not revealed anything more than there had been a passenger but their face was always hidden from the camera. They were trying to find out if anyone had seen this passenger get on the bus.

Frowning, but otherwise not displaying what he was truly feeling, Feral handed the report back to Steele. He made plans to visit the coroner's office himself later that day.

"It does look like foul play was involved but there's no way to know for certain until all the evidence is in. Have you viewed the tape?" Feral asked Steele.

"Yes sir, unfortunately, though the camera does show a passenger, the suspect always kept his face out of camera range except for the last two seconds before the time of death but even that was blurred. CSI is trying to find a way to bring that into focus." Steele reported.

"Alright, keep on top of the case, Steele. Let me know what you find out." He said dismissing his second.

"Yes, sir!" Steele said briskly, turning and leaving.

Once Steele was gone Feral's stern mask fell momentarily as concern and worry spread across it. The cause of death and the method sounded all too familiar to him. He needed to look at that body to know if his suspicions were warranted. Unhappy, he put his stern face back on and tried to focus on the work on his desk. He needed to give the coroner time to work on the body before dropping in to see him.

After lunch, Feral headed to the morgue. He made his way straight to the coroner's officer area.

"Hello Commander Feral. You're here to see Dr. Robbins?" The she-kat that manned the front office asked.

"Yes, he's supposed to be expecting me." Feral said.

"Let me see if he's free and let him know you are here, sir." She said picking up a phone. 

Moments later she gestured he could proceed. Nodding his thanks, Feral walked down a short hallway and through a set of swing doors that led into the outer area of the morgue. He pushed opened the inner doors and walked up to a short, older tabby male, wearing a blue lab coat making an audio report about the body laying on the exam table before him.

Feral waited patiently until the doctor was done. The doctor clicked off the recorder and turned around. 

"Good afternoon, Commander. Come to see our mystery death?" The doctor asked laconically.

"Yes. Got anything to tell me?" Feral asked staring down at the barely recognizable body with a grimace.

"Not much, I'm afraid. This is the oddest autopsy I've ever performed. If you'll look at his forearms. You'll note that the burns are much worse there than anywhere else on the body. I have to assume this is where the electrical current, whatever it was, struck his body." The doctor said.

"You found nothing else that could have caused his death?" Feral asked as he carefully examined the body more closely.

"I did a complete exam. This was a perfectly healthy, thirty year old male. No signs of disease, injury other than what caused his death, and the tox screen came back clean." The doctor said firmly. "He was probably holding up his arms like this..." Dr. Robbins demonstrated holding his arms before his face. "That's how they were burned much more severely than the rest of his body. But what could have caused it, I just can't determine."

"I see, so what have you put down as cause of death?" Feral asked.

"Electrical shock caused by an unknown source. Tentatively...murder. I just can't say there was anything natural about it. Until you guys find something else, that's all I can give you." Dr. Robbins said shaking his head.

"Right. My officers are checking out the possibility of a passenger having seen or been the cause of this. That's all we know for now. Thank you for your time, Dr. Robbins. I'll be sure to put this in my report." Feral said. The doctor nodded and returned to his work while the Commander took his leave from this room of death.

Once outside, Feral walked back to his car and climbed inside, there he took out his cell phone and hit speed dial. The phone on other end rang several times before someone finally picked it up. Loud music could be heard in the background as the person answered.

"Club Imrie, Ricky Bishop speaking. How can I help you?" A heavy tenor voice asked.

"Rick, it's me." Feral said letting her true voice drop through the illusion.

"Oh, hey, Dena! What's up?" Ricky asked in concern since she normally didn't call the club.

"Is Zachary there? I need to talk to him. It's urgent!" She said tightly.

"Sure, let me get him." Ricky said. Holding the phone to his chest, he called out for the owner of the club. When Zachary came over to him, Ricky told him who was calling.

Taking the phone from Ricky, Zachary frowned in concern as he asked, "Dena, you okay?"

"I'm fine. But there's a possible problem. Are the Elders still meeting as planned?" She asked beginning to feel anxious.

"Yes, why? What's going on Dena?" Zachary asked sensing something serious was going down.

"Last night a young male was killed while driving a transit bus. Cause of death is being put down as electrical shock and a possible homicide. So far the investigators can't come up with how he could have died that way normally hence the murder designation. His arms were severely burned as if protecting himself. He was burned to nearly a crisp." She reported tersely.

"Damn, a possible Rogue. Our cover isn't blown is it?" Zachary demanded questioningly.

"No! There's no hint the Kats even suspect that. They think it's some type of weapon and that a passenger could have been the murderer. More likely it's our Rogue. We need to find him or her quickly and find out why they killed that driver." Feral said urgently.

"Right. I'll notify the hunters of a possible Rogue and have them get a hold of you for the details so they can track them down quickly." He said decisively trying to set her mind at ease.

"Thanks, I'll expect their call. Keep me informed if you hear anything." She said with a sigh.

"Will do." He said then hung up.

She closed her phone and sighed. How could one of her kind be so stupid to kill a Kat so openly, exposing their kind to the scrutiny of Katkind. They had to be insane. She hoped the hunters found the Rogue quickly before they could cause even more harm. She glanced in her rear view mirror to insure her spell shape was still in place. A male face stared back at her.

Satisfied, she started her car and made her way to Enforcer Headquarters. She ruminated about the reasons for such secrecy. The fact she could alter her appearance with magic was enough to have her killed by the Kats she had sworn to protect.

She had been born as part of a set of fraternal twins. She had been named Dena Feral. Her brother's whereabouts were unknown. Her parents were dead. Her race lived within the Kat population hiding their true selves in self defense. In ancient times, her species was known as Iriomkats and had been enslaved by Kat kind because they were feared for the special abilities they possessed. Kat kind felt, to be safe, they had to ruthlessly control this dangerous race at all costs. They treated the Iriomkats as little more than slaves and used them to do all their hard labor. Their cruelty and fear nearly caused the Iriomkat's extinction. To save their race they learned to use magic and escaped captivity, hiding their existence. Now years later, they still hid themselves away not trusting Kat kind to have changed enough to trust them.

What made them feared were their gifts of exceptional senses, strength, speed of movement, immune systems that made them rarely ill or easily poisoned, and their greatest weapon and protection...the ability to control, generate, and absorb electrical fields.

This ability allowed her kind to discharge and direct electricity. This could be used to do something as simple as breaking a lock to doing serious damage like blasting barriers to escape and knocking a Kat unconscious or to kill. They weren't immune to their weapon being used against them by one their own either.

Any and all distinguishing marks were hidden by magic. All her kind possessed either dusky or grayish dark brown spots in dense longitudinal rows down their backs. The spots tended to coalesce into bands with either five or seven dark stripes that ran along the neck..

Now, in modern times they congregated in small groups using clubs as a way to keep in touch, receive protection and meet a mate. Sighing, her revere ending as she reached Enforcer Headquarters and returned to work. She ordered a sandwich delivered to her office since she'd missed lunch and returned to taking care of the various projects that needed her attention.

The day passed without further incident. For once, the SWAT Kats was not on her major worry list. By quitting time, she actually managed to complete her days work. Tossing the last report in her secretary's in basket, she stretched and got up to leave. Grabbing her coat and pulling it on, she stepped out of her office and locked her door. She joined the mass exodus of enforcers leaving for the day and made her way home.

Once behind her locked apartment door and the curtains closed, she dropped her disguise and shook out her hair. She made her way to the bathroom where she stripped and tossed her clothes in the laundry basket. She stepped into a nice hot shower allowing it to help relax her tense muscles.

Clean and relaxed she went to her dresser and put on fresh underwear and bra then went to her closet and decided to wear a simple white pullover long sleeve t-shirt, black jeans, black tennis shoes and a long black coat. Skipping a purse, she jammed her wallet into her pants and grabbed her keys. Looking out quickly, she checked to make sure no one saw her leave then took the back stairs to the garage for her car. She always took great care that no one saw her coming and going as female from her apartment.

She took off for the club. She planned on reporting what had happened last night personally to the Elders tonight at their meeting. The Elders of their kind were responsible for ensuring the safety of their race. They monitored births, matings, and deaths. They meted out punishment when one of their own broke the rules of conduct that protected their kind from exposure.

Once at the club, Dena met up with Ricky, a young Iriomkat tom with grey fur and blue eyes. Ricky nodded at her as she made her way to the back. Going to what looked like nothing more than a simple storage closet, she went to the back wall and pressed a hidden stud that opened a secret door. She quickly hurried through letting the door close silently behind her. Before her was a set of stairs leading down.

When she reached the bottom she was greeted by a heavy door guarded by a pair of strong Iriomkat warriors sitting in chairs to either side of it. They jumped to their feet at her arrival but relax when they saw who it was. They nodded at her as one of them opened the door for her to enter. She smiled briefly at them then stepped into the room beyond.

Hidden underground was a large room filled with Iriomkats of various ages talking and circulating with others around the room. There were many tables scattered throughout with a stage holding a table and chairs for the Elders. The room served as a gathering place that was safe and secure. It was brightly lit and had tapestries hanging on the walls that depicted their history. There was a divider at one end of the room that held medical equipment and a mini clinic should any of their kind become ill. Another area was segregated as a play area for their young while the adults amused themselves or had meetings.

"Dena! Over here!" A voice called out to Feral who looked around the room until she spotted the chocolate colored tom with onyx eyes that had hailed her.

Feral walked over to where the handsome tom was saving a seat for her at his table. He gave her one of his smiles that made many she-kats of both races melt but had no effect on her much to his chagrin. She offered a smile of friendly warmth and not much else as she took a seat next to him.

"Have you found out anything since I talked to you, Zachary?" She asked bluntly.

"Always business with you, eh, Dena?" He said ruefully. "No, nothings been found yet but then they've barely begun looking. It will take time, much as we don't like it. They won't stop hunting for the person. You'll be the first to know after the Elders are informed, trust me." He said reassuringly.

She growled in disappoint but didn't press the issue as she looked around the room. Zachary took the opportunity to study her. It was rare to see her in her true form now a days. She wore her male illusion nearly constantly since she had become an enforcer especially the Chief. She was quite fetching and would be the perfect catch for some lucky male if she would just settle down and chose a mate and have kittens. He sighed, that was wishful thinking. She was never one to follow tradition and that just added to her attraction.

He had known her from kittenhood when they both met in a foster home. She had just lost her parents to robbers and her twin brother had been taken away and no one seemed to know where. Because of that, she wasn't one to make friends easily...always afraid they would be taken from her like her family. But once someone could get past that, she would be a friend for life. It was her most endearing quality, that and her loyalty to those she protected.

"So what are going to tell the Elders?" Zachary asked breaking the silence between them.

"I'll present all the facts we have at this moment and try to convince them that we have a Rogue on our paws. Some of them are very stubborn despite all the evidence to the contrary. They really don't like to believe we could have Rogue's still occurring among us despite how rare an occurrence it is." She sighed.

"You're very good at convincing especially with the evidence on your side. How can they refuse to believe?" Zachary asked.

"Oh they can, believe me. Especially Oliver...he has a bad habit of refusing to believe what's in front of him. He thinks we're too young to think clearly and are too quick to see trouble every where." She said sourly.

Oliver Brown was one of the five Elders that watched over the Iriomkats of Megakat City. He was very stubborn about such things. Refusing to believe that one their own would dare to threaten the safety of their kind. But, luckily he was the only one. Once Feral convinced the other four, Oliver would be outvoted and he could do nothing about it.

Ever since she had met the Elders as a young teen, Oliver had rubbed her the wrong way due to his obstinate ways. He was the one who had tried to prevent her from joining the enforcers for fear she would give them away...not trusting her ability to keep herself a secret.

Well she had proven him wrong. She had been extremely careful to portray a strong male image in a field dominated by males. Her secret had never been compromised despite her numerous run ins with the major villains that attacked the city on a regular basis. She had proven herself over and over since her rise in the ranks to the top position but it still didn't seem to matter to Oliver.

"Dena, it time." Zachary said, interrupting her thoughts, as he got up from his seat. The Elders filed in and took their seats. The room went quiet.

"Right, let's go." She said as she prepared to walk up and present her case before the Elders with her long time friend at her side.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Author's Note: Here's a dark story with a different kind of twist. Hope you like it. Ulyferal is acting as my beta for this story.

Two weeks had passed since he'd arrived in Megakat City. He'd spent the time refamiliarizing himself with his former homeland. He took the occasional odd job to have pocket cash for necessities. No one disturbed him in the abandoned house he taken over as his own. Today, though, he had decided to visit the Home for Abandoned Kittens where he had been fostered out. He hoped to find some trace of where his twin had gone. When their parents died the city tried to find some blood family to take them but despite a lengthy search no relatives could be found. The twins were placed in the foster care system. No one cared enough to try and keep them together.

The foster home he'd been placed in was a nasty one. The foster parents, if you could call them that, were always out partying or drinking and leaving the kittens in their charge alone to fend for themselves. This led to anarchy among the fosterlings.

The oldest bullied the youngest and because he was new, the younger ones used what they had learned at the paws of the older ones to play cruel but harmless tricks on him. Their mind games gradually wore him down despite his efforts to withstand them. Finally, he tried to run away only to be returned several hours later. More abuse was heaped on him for his causing trouble.

Initially, when he'd been placed in this home, he thought if he was a good Iriomkat kitten, they would bring his sister to him or let him go to his sister or at least tell him where she was but no matter how good he tried to be no one cared. So after his one time running away, he did his best to avoid the other kittens and bided his time until he was old enough.

He was barely in his teens when he ran away for good. He earned some pocket money doing errands until he had earned enough to catch a bus to another city. He learned to fend for himself during this time and was a tough teen by the time he stepped off that bus. It was here that he met his mate, Amy. For three years those were the most happiest times for him but that too came to an end.

Now, back in the city where it had all started, he was determined to find his sister no matter the cost. Calmly he walked over to the receptionist at the desk, lightly sniffing the air to see if this she-kat was one of his kind or a Kat. He snorted when the scent registered Kat.

"Can I help you?" The old receptionist asked pushing her glasses up her nose to get a better look at him.

"Yes, I'd like to know if Mrs. Rockwell is still employed here and if so could if I could please speak with her?" He asked the old kat politely though inside he felt sick.

"Yes, Mrs. Rockwell is still here. Hang on a moment, I'll see if she's free right now. May I ask who you are?" the kat asked as she reached for her phone.

'Worthless!' He thought but spoke, "It Demon Feral."

She nodded then dialed a number and waited. He looked around while he waited, not really listening to the conversation. He heard the sound of a click and turned to see she had hung up the phone.

"She say to come in." The receptionist said politely.

"Thank you."

He walked pass the lobby then down the hallway to a door with the name Hailey Rockwell plated on it. He raised a paw and knocked on the door. He heard a soft 'come in' and opened the door. Inside the room was a desk covered with paperwork and behind it was an aging she-kat whose once brown colored fur was beginning to show signs of gray.

"Demon? Oh, my! How you have grown! Come sit down." Mrs. Rockwell said pleased and amazed that the former runt sized kitten had turned into this powerful looking male.

"Hello, Mrs. Rockwell. It's good to see you again. How have you been these past few years?" Demon asked as he took a seat.

"It's been good. I'll be returning soon. Demon, where have you been all these years? If you don't mind me asking." She asked curiously.

"Here and there, I've been moving from city to city all these years. I'm glad to hear you'll be returning."

Mrs. Rockwell smiled, "Thank you. Now what can I do for you today?"

"I was wondering if you could tell me what happened to my sister after we were separated." Demon asked hopefully

"I'm sorry, Demon, but I can't tell you. The law doesn't allow me to. I'm truly sorry." Mrs. Rockwell said her face showing her disappointment.

"Couldn't you just bend the law just this once? I've been trying to find my sister all these years!" Demon asked hoping his plea would change her mind.

"I'm sorry, I can't."

"You can't or you won't?" His voice becoming a little colder.

Mrs. Rockwell suddenly felt a shiver of fear run down her old body as Demon's once friendly eyes turned cold. This was not the same frightened little kitten she had met years ago. There was a feeling of danger about him now that made her afraid the wrong word would have him attacking her.

"I think you should leave now." Mrs. Rockwell said firmly trying to hide her fear.

Demon stood up looking down at her as if she was inferior to him. Cold fear held her but she didn't show it.

Demon stared at her a little longer then left, slamming the door behind him causing the pictures on the wall to jump. Never in her life had she been so scared. She had been threatened many times before in her job but they were always threats. She realized what made her fear Demon so much was the fact she knew he would follow through if he ever made a threat. She shivered again and tried to put the incident out of her mind.

Out in the hallway, Demon stood a moment studying Mrs. Rockwell's business card. He flipped it in his fingers and looked at the phone numbers for work and home. It was her personal number that interested him. He'd look up where she lived and pay her a visit where she would tell him what he wanted to know.

Feral sat in her apartment sprawled on her couch as she read Zachary's preliminary report. So far the hunters had found no trace of their rogue nor had her enforcers. She was grateful for the latter since it meant their secret was still safe. Though her enforcers had run into a dead end, the hunters, by the decree of the elders, would continue the search. 

Though Oliver was against it, he was forced to keep quiet due to the strong evidence she had presented. He still thought she was jumping at shadows. Nothing would convince him otherwise. It was lucky there were more sensible heads among the elders. Feral snorted at Oliver's stubborn and obstinate behavior. She didn't see how he could be an elder since he rarely showed any wisdom in his decisions. She sighed and tossed the folder down on the coffee table. Now it was a waiting game while the hunters searched.

Her golden eyes looked toward the clock hanging on the far wall of her apartment. The Elder Serena Elrice wanted to see her in half an hour. She had a good idea what the she-kat wanted to see her about.

With a sigh, she got up from the couch, got her coat and wallet and left for the club. She passed through the moderately busy place and slipped to the back then to the hidden secret door. Quickly triggering the release she opened the panel and went down the stairs. She gave a brief hello to the guards who opened the door for her. It was busy but not so much as when the elders held their meeting. 

Quietly she found an vacant table and sat down. While she waited she watched the others in the room. A pair of twins, tom and she-kat, were playing a game of tag. Running around the two kitten shrieked with laughter and giggles. For a moment the scene reminded her of when she was a kitten and playing the very same game with her brother. Suddenly she was snap out her memory as the little Iriomkat she-kat tripped and fell.

The little one began to cry her paws to her face as she tried to stop the tears. Her twin stopped what he was doing and came quickly over to his sister's side to comfort her.

"What was that look on your face, Dena? I've never see it on your face before." A voice said suddenly near her side.

Startled Feral jumped up to look behind her. It was Elder Serena Elrice standing there eyeing her curiously. The old she-kat had rusty red colored fur with greenish blue eyes.

"Hello, Elder Serena." Feral said politely, bowing her head to show respect but not answering her question.

"Just Serena for today. I'm glad you could come, I have some matters I wish to speak with you about." Serena said sitting across from Feral.

"And what matters would that be El…Serena?" She asked in concern.

"As you know, Elder Oliver did point out a serious matter to you during the meeting." Serena said quietly.

Feral growled, "What does that have to do with searching for the rogue?!"

"Nothing in truth, but Dena you really need to think seriously about this matter. It's high time you found yourself a mate and have a few kittens." Serena said ignoring Feral's rising anger on the subject.

"I will! Just not right now! Having a mate and kittens wouldn't be a good a idea at this time." Feral growled.

"I understand that's true, considering that job of yours. But we would like to see your family line continue. Your family was one of four families to learn magic." Sarena said seriously.

"Yes, of course. To lose such a family line would be saddening and a great loss to the Iriomkat species, I understand that." Feral said looking down ashamed.

Serena nodded, "If you need help in looking for a mate I can help. I could have you meet one of my grandsons. My youngest one is looking for his mate. You just might be…" She began.

"Thank you but no. I'd rather find my mate on my own." Feral said quickly

"Just think about it okay?" Serena asked, letting the subject go for now.

"Yes, I will. Anything else?" Feral asked trying to change the subject without being rude.

Serena shook her head. Dena stood quickly, nodded respectfully then left. She grumbled angrily to herself as she went out the door of the club. Elder Serena was right about the real need for her to mate and bear kittens, she just didn't think now was the time since the city was under constant siege from the big criminals. The council was pressing her now because she was just coming into her breeding years. Well they would just have to wait, she wasn't looking right now.

Though Zachary had a thing for her, her instincts told her he wasn't the one. Iriomkats mated for life. They had an inbuilt method of determining who was the right match for them. This took the guess work out of getting the right mate. Unlike Kats, there was no such thing as a wrong match. So even though Zachary really wanted to get together with her, if a real mate showed up, it would cause a strain between them. She would just rather avoid that. He was a good friend and she wanted to keep it that way.

Despite all the males she came in contact with in her job, none had ever triggered her mating instincts. When it did finally happen, it would place her in a dangerous position. Iriomkats went into an intense mating heat that bonded them to their new mate forging an empathic link between them. This would allow them feel each others emotions. When death took one half of the pairing, the other would mourn the loss, become cold and remote and, to often, not mate again.

As she stepped out of the club and went to her car, Dena sighed. Speaking of Zachary, he had called her earlier and asked that she come to a new club he was opening. She really wasn't in the mood but she had promised.

As she drove, her mind still fumed. She still had a bad taste in her mouth over what Oliver had done during the meeting. She could understand Serena's concerns but Oliver bringing it up had been for some agenda of his own. Mentioning her lack of a mate made it seem as if she wasn't able to understand the fears of mated couples if a rogue was on the loose and the cost to them if their existence was revealed.

'Seriously, one of these days I'm going to say to hell with the rules and kick Oliver's sorry excuse of a tail!' She thought as she reached the club.

Across the city, Demon was just leaving the house of Mr. and Mrs. Rockwell where he had paid her a visit tonight. He had shocked her when he showed up on her doorstep knocking then pushing her out of the way as she answered the door.

"Demon! What are you doing here? How did you find out where I lived?!" Mrs. Rockwell asked, terrified.

"I'm here to ask you one last time to tell me where my sister is of your own free will. If not, then I will force it out of you." Demon warned her coldly, ignoring her questions.

Mrs. Rockwell stood there feeling like a deer caught in the headlights of a fast moving truck as Demon stared at with such cold eyes and voice. She could only stand there as her mind processed what Demon had demanded, unsure of what to do now.

"I-I can't! It's against the law!" Mrs. Rockwell repeated earlier, praying he would accept her inability to give him an answer.

"That's…too bad. I sort of like you even if you are a kat." Demon said moving to her, his paw reaching out.

"Hold it right there!" Barked a shaky voice.

Demon stopped his paw just an inch away from Mrs. Rockwell's throat. His eyes flicked behind her and saw Mr. Rockwell standing in the hallway holding a gun on him. Demon suddenly smiled, it was cold and sinister as he focused on the gun.

"And if I don't?" Demon asked still smiling.

"I'll shoot!" Mr. Rockwell warned, wondering why this 'kat' wasn't afraid.

Demon suddenly began to laugh hysterically. Mr. and Mrs. Rockwell could only stare at him as if he had just lost his mind completely. Then moving faster than they could register, Demon pushed Mrs. Rockwell out of his way and charged toward Mr. Rockwell who gasped and began to shoot. He only managed to get off one round before Demon was on him. A paw gripped the older kats wrist and squeezed till he was forced to let go of the gun and it dropped to the floor while Demon's other paw reached out and gripped Mr. Rockwell's throat in a viselike hold.

Mrs. Rockwell screamed in pure horror as a burst of electrical energy shot from Demon's paw into her husband's body. She could only watch, frozen in terror, as her husband died before her eyes. Demon smiled maniacally the whole time then released the dead body to drop heavily to the floor. Slowly he turned around to face the still frozen Mr. Rockwell.

"Y-y-you're a-a m-m-monster!" Mrs. Rockwell finally stuttered, tears falling from her eyes.

"No, not a monster. I'm an Iriomkat." Demon said raising his paw to form a ball of energy in his palm. "Now you will answer my question!" He said coldly as he approached her.

In the end, Demon did get some info on his sister. Before dying, Mrs. Rockwell told him his sister was holding a job in this city. It wasn't as specific as he'd hoped but at least he knew she was in this city and he didn't have to look elsewhere. Now all he had to do is think of what type of job his sister might take. He left the Rockwell's house and walked down the street thinking.

He thought back in his memory to when they were kittens and about the things she liked to do. Somewhere in his memory, he should be able to figure out where she might be. He was so focused inward that he didn't notice the group of thugs following him.

They surrounded him without him realizing it until he bumped into one of them. Frowning he stopped and looked around himself. Angry at being accosted he snarled at them.  
"Get out of my way." Demon growled, warningly.

"Oh, we will mister. But first give us all the money you got on you and we'll let you live." One of the thugs, obliviously the leader of the group, demanded with a smirked.

"Money and you'll let me live?" Demon said incredulously, nearly laughing in disbelief that this Kat dared to threaten him and used the same words he remembered were said to his mate before she was killed.

"That's right. Now…!" The Kat demanded again but never got to finish his sentence when a bolt of electricity struck him in the chest. The leader fell over dead.

"I'll kill you all. Every single one of you!" Demon snarled turning on the others in a murderous rage. The rest of the gang stepped back in horror getting ready to run when Demon fell on them..

Across the city at the new club, Majik, Feral waited for Zachary, sipping some water and looking around. Music boomed loudly and colored lights flashed off and on. Though the new club looked pretty cool, she couldn't keep her mind on the scene around her. It had been two weeks since the rogue had murdered that male, she wondered why there had been nothing more from them.

Suddenly a shadow loomed over her and wrapped two arms around her shoulders. She gasped as Zachary pulled her closer to his chest to give her a hug. He released her a second later and moved to sit down in front of her.

Taking her two paws in his he said, "I'm glad you could come."

"Why did you want to see me? Did you find something on our rouge?" Feral asked hopefully.

"No more than what I told you earlier. Now would you please forget about the rogue and your work, for a little while? Tonight, I want you to have some fun...enjoy yourself." He begged her.

"Zachary, I can't. You know I work early and there's so much to do..." She began with a groan of annoyance.

"Come on Dena! You haven't had any fun or spent any time with me since you joined the enforcers! Everything in your life can't be just your work. It isn't healthy and besides...I miss you! Please say you'll stay and have some fun for just a little while?" He urged her, trying to hold back his frustration with her.

"I know...I'm sorry. It's hard to juggle my duties as Chief Enforcer and a personal life. If this were an ordinary city, it wouldn't be such a problem but Megakat City is anything but ordinary and I seem to have very little time to myself. I know you miss me...I miss spending time with you too." She sighed, understanding only too well how her friend felt. They used to be inseparable when they were growing up but her job had pulled them apart. "Alright, but just for a few hours then I've got to go." Feral said knowing she had to make up for the time she had spend away from him.

Zachary smiled, "Good. Now let's hit the dance floor! I still remember what a great dancer you are."

Feral blushed a little at Zachary's words as he led her to the dance floor. She quietly sighed maybe this was what she needed to take her mind off things as she let Zachary take control of their dancing.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Author's Note: Here's a dark story with a different kind of twist. Hope you like it. Ulyferal is acting as my beta for this story.

Dusk was falling as Feral sat in her car moving slowly through the quitting time traffic. Around her were impatient drivers honking horns, anxious to get home. As she waited for the traffic to move her mind went back to the day's events.

Dark Kat had decided to show his ugly face again. His target this time was a batch of mutagen chemicals. Once again, the unprintable SWAT Kats saved the day by reining Dark Kat in before he could lay his paws on the chemicals thus saving the city. Ms. Briggs, of course, thanked them profusely then turned to her Chief Enforcer and chewed Dena out for not doing her job properly.

She grit her teeth at the memory of Ms. Briggs' lecture. It was bad enough being shown up by the SWAT Kats but then to have to endure a ripping from the Deputy Mayor...sometimes Feral really wished she could reveal what she really was and show off her true capabilities. It would be so worth it to rub their faces in it. Then she sighed, that was just wishful thinking no matter how good it would feel to see Briggs in shock. Sometimes life just wasn't fair.

Shaking her head to clear it of these unproductive thoughts, Feral pulled into her favorite grocery store parking lot. She needed to refill her cupboards and refrigerator for the month. Looking around to make sure no one was looking in her direction, she allowed the spell on her form to dissipate.

Now as female, she stepped out of her car and locked it. She walked across the parking lot and went in. Grabbing a cart, she began to rove the ails and studying her grocery list. She stopped at the deli, she picked up something to eat. She was unaware of the male who had come to stand behind her. The male had not been paying attention either as he was trying to decide what to have for dinner as well.

As Feral thanked the young kat for her sandwich and chicken salad, she turned around quickly holding the items close to her and promptly walked into a broad, hard chest causing her to spill her food on them both.

"Ohh no...I'm sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going!" Feral said totally mortified and stepping back from the male she'd run into.

Looking up from the mess she'd inadvertently made into the male's face as she apologized, she was stunned by a pair of eyes identical to her own and a face she never thought to see again. Her mouth dropped open in shock. 'It can't be!?' She thought giddily, unable to speak for a moment.

Just minutes before, Demon had huffed to himself as he entered the store. He was hungry and decided to halt his work on the place he had claimed as his own to pick up some groceries and dinner. He'd spent the day going around the house to see what needed fixing and was surprised to find the house was in pretty good shape. It just needed some cosmetic work...painting and such...to be livable. It was when his stomach began to growl hungrily that he stopped to make this run to the store he remembered seeing a few blocks away.

Since the city was coming into its summer season, he didn't need to wear a jacket so he stepped out and power walked to the store. He purchased some of the supplies he needed to work on the house and was now approaching the deli to get something for dinner. He wasn't really paying attention when a female turned from the counter.

At first he was furious and was about to lash out to her when he got a good look at her. He barely heard her apologies which trailed off as the female stared at him in shock to match his own. They stood there staring.

The female was only an inch-shorter than he, had golden eyes exactly like his. 'It couldn't be!' He thought in rising hope. Reining in his excitement, he sniffed the air lightly to determine if what his eyes beheld was indeed who he thought it was. His nose picked up the very familiar and longed for scent of another Iriomkat and not just any Iriomkat...his missing twin sister.

"Dena?" Demon breathed her name with rising joy.

"Demon?" Dena finally found her voice and asked hesitantly even though his scent said it had to be him.

Demon reached out and took his twin into his arms ignoring the mess on their clothes, hugging her tightly. Dena moaned with relief and joy as she returned her brother's embrace. The end of a long search was finally over for Demon.

Dena had spent many a night over the years crying for her brother she thought to be dead like her mother and father. It was a great relief and wonder to find he was very much alive. They clung to each other ignoring the looks the patrons of the store gave them. Finally, they pulled back a little so that they could stare into each other's face.

"I can't believe it! Oh, Demon, you're alive!" Dena said, her eyes beginning to tear up a little.

"Well of course! Why? Did you think I was dead?" He asked in surprise. She seemed so very shocked to see him.

"You jerk!" She said suddenly angry that he could ask that. "Of course I did! Do you know how long I searched for you and finally had to give up? It had been so long, I began to believe you had to be dead because if you had been alive you would have contacted me!" She was nearly shouting.

"I'm sorry! I truly am! If I had known what this would do to you, I wouldn't have left. But the first chance I got to get out of this city I took it." Demon said trying to placate her.

"You could have contacted me! I sent letters and birthday cards to the foster home you were placed at, telling you where I was and what was happening!" She explained, still angry.

"What? You did? But I never got those!" Demon said, realizing his crappy foster parents had taken his mail. 'Those bastards!' He thought furiously, his fists clenching at what they had done to his sister and he. It was one more piece of injustice.

"How could you not? I mailed them myself and everything." Dena persisted, unaware of the turmoil her statement had risen in her brother.

"Because my crappy foster parents regularly neglected the kittens in their care and obviously, stole the mail from all of us. I never received anything you sent. I thought you didn't care or that something had happened to you." He growled bitterly.

"Why would they do such a thing?" Dena asked appalled that such a thing could have happened.

"You apparently were lucky, Dena. My foster home was nasty and brutal." He said tightly looking away.

"Oh, Demon, I'm so sorry." She said in anguish.

"You've got no reason to apologize." Demon said quickly not wanting her to blame herself.

Dena shook her head. "I should have tried harder to find you. Zachary could have helped too." She insisted.

That caught Demon's attention. " Zachary? Who's he?" He demanded.

She was about to answer when she finally realized they were causing a scene. They needed to leave here before they said something that kats shouldn't be hearing.

"This isn't the place to have this conversation, Demon. Let's pay for our stuff and get out of here to talk." She coaxed him. He realized the same thing and nodded. She stepped back to the deli and asked for some paper towels. She wiped them both off as best she could.

"Good idea. Hey, let me buy you dinner. It's the least I can do since I did make you spill your dinner." He grinned at her.

"You're on! By the why, Demon, where are you living since you returned here?" Dena asked as they rolled their carts to the checkout registers and unloaded her groceries and his supplies.

"At a hotel. Just until I find a place of my own. So don't worry about me okay? I lived in hotels nearly all my life so I'm okay with it." Demon said reassuring his sister before she could offer to put him up at her place.

"You sure? It's not any trouble if you want to stay with me. My apartment is big enough for the two of us." Dena said, wanting to at least make the offer.

"No, I'm alright." Demon insisted.

Demon carried his bags and offered to take hers, "Here let me help."

"No that's okay. I've got my car here." She said rolling her cart out the door and walking up to a truck. She unlocked the door and placed hers and Demons goods on the bench seat behind the driver's seat. She gestured him to climb inside. As she started her vehicle, she asked, "So where would you like to go eat?"

"Ah... I don't know. I just got here about two weeks ago and I'm still trying to familiarize myself with the city again." Demon said getting in.

"There's a dinner some blocks away. Does that sound okay?" Dena asked as she put the truck in gear and began to drive out of the parking lot.

"Sure, sounds find to me!" He said agreeably. He stayed silent until she was driving down the road and asked, "Dena, about this Zachary, how well do you know him?"

"Since kittenhood. He and his brother were in the same foster home I was and... well…he knew what I was going through since he lost his parents as well. Zachary really helped me through the tough times and became a really good friend of mine." Dena said smiling at the memories.

"Well, I'm was glad there someone other then me who could put up with that temper of yours." Demon said smiling as well.

"Hey, your temper is as bad as mine!" Dena said playfully

"Yeah, but I can control it. Plus you remember how mom was always worried about you because of that. If I remember you used to like to get into fights as a kitten. You were such a tomkat back then." Demon said just as playfully, remembering how she would have preferred to play with tom kittens rather she-kat kittens.

"Yeah, I remember. But dad always told her everything would be okay since it would make it a lot harder for guys to come near me." She smirked.

Demon nodded looking out the car window before speaking again, " So what have you been doing these past few years?"

"Nothing much. Just trying to keep the peace and safety of the katizens of this city." Dean said blithely.

"What, seriously? You are an enforcer or something like that?" Demon asked looking at her.

She grinned broadly. "I am the Chief Enforcer, actually." She said with no little pride.

"WHAT?!" He blurted, gaping at her in shocked surprise.

Dena jump a little at her brother's shout. She turned to look at him, frowning in surprise. His face held stunned disbelief and something else lurked in his eyes. Thinking he was concerned for her safety, she quickly set his fear aside.

"It's alright! I love my job and I'm always careful even in the line of fire. I never give away who or what I am and have never used my powers in front of a kat. I've been Chief Enforcer for the past five years and as you can see, I'm fine." Dena reassured him.

"But still Dena, you could get hurt or worse! Protecting the katizens of this city is not worth it." Demon said fuming unhappily.

"How can you say that! All katizens have a right to protection whether they are Iriomkats or Kats." She said hotly, surprised he could say such a thing.

"Iriomkats, yes! But not Kats! Not after what they did to us! And more so what they did to me!" He snapped.

Dena pulled into the dinner parking lot. She parked and turned off the engine then turned to her brother in concern. "What was done to you?" She asked seriously.

Demon sat there not moving for a moment before speaking, "Three years ago I met an Iriomkat she-kat. Her name was Amy Shields. She lived in a small southern town that I stopped by one day. It turned out that Amy was my mate, so I decided to stay there since she loved the town so much." He started to explain.

Dena nodded, staying silent and letting Demon say what he needed to. "But one day when she was coming home from work, a couple of young thug teen kats ganged up on her. They demanded she hand over any money she had." He said tightly, the fury at the memory building inside him. He turned to his sister and fairly spitted out, "They killed her, Dena. Even when she handed them the money, they still killed her. And for what? A measly five dollars! That's all she had on her!" He choked, the injustice of it still twisting his gut.

Demon's body began to shake. Rage swept over him at the memory of those kats that had killed his mate and at himself for not being there to save her. But as quickly as the rage welled up it was overwhelmed by the grief he had not been able to deal with. He choked with suppressed pain. Dena reached over to him and pulled him into a comforting hug.

His pain finally found an outlet and he wept in his sisters arms. Back there in that town that had been his mate's home, he trusted no one and didn't release any of his grief now it spilled out unchecked. His backed up grief over his parents deaths and his mates swept through him hard. He shuddered and sobbed for some time. Dena gently hugged him, rubbed his back and made soothing sounds to help ease through the pain until he finally calmed down.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to go off like that." Demon said in apology when he was able to control himself once more and gently pushed back from his sister's embrace.

"Aw Demon, it's alright. You needed to let go of all that grief. Losing one's mate is hard but you can't let it bottle up like that. It's not healthy." She said gently letting him go.

"I didn't want to but there was no one there at that town who I trusted enough to release it." He said quietly. He sighed, actually feeling a little better then his stomach growled.

"Well that's a good sign." Dena said with a warm smile.

"Geez, with all that's been happening, I forgot how hungry I was." Demon said sheepishly

"I can understand that! Come on, let's go inside. Afterward we'll both go to Club Imrie." Dena said feeling hungry too.

"Club Imrie? Why do you want to go there?" He asked in puzzlement.

"It's the main club where the Iriomkats of Megakat City can meet safely. Zachary and his brother, Rick are in change of the place." She told him.

"So Zachary and Rick are the owners? Tell me, Dena is either Zachary or Rick your mate?" Demon asked.

"No they are not and I am not looking for a mate at this time. My duties as the Chief Enforcer of this city keeps me too busy and I have far too many enemies to risk a mate's safety for. I have plenty of time to find him later." She said bluntly making it clear the subject was a sensitive one and that she was not willing to discuss it further.

Demon nodded, respecting her wishes, but concerned for her nonetheless. He intended to discuss at another time when she was more receptive. The subject seemed to bother her for some reason and he wanted to find out why.

They climbed out of the truck and went into the dinner to eat their belated dinner and talk about more safer subjects.

At Club Imrie, Zachary sat on a bar stool nursing one of the many drinks that the club offered. He had spent most of the day working and calling Dena to apologize for the way he acted last night. He had tried to get Dena to spend the night with him and had been a bit forceful about it. She rejected his offer rather harshly and left the club in a huff of offended dignity.

"Dude, get over it! Dena will forgive you, ya know. You just have to give her some time. So quit sitting over there like a bump on a log and help me out! Happy hour's over!" Rick said snapping at his brother.

"Fine." Zachary said getting up to help with the cleaning.

Rick sighed as his brother moved like a robot doing the chores while his mind was somewhere else. He could only shake his head. His brother had a bad habit of going after things he shouldn't. Going after Dena was not a new thing but his persistence would only cause him and her pain and could end their lifelong friendship. He really didn't want to see that happen but his brother was nearly obsessed with Dena. If only he would find someone who wanted him or even luck out and find a mate and stop pining for her.

"Why don't you just give up? You know she doesn't want you that way! You're only hurting yourself and could ruin your friendship with her for good." Rick said persistently, trying to knock some sense into his brother.

"You'll understand when you're older." Zachary muttered flatly, not looking at his brother.

"Oh, you mean five minutes from now?" Rick said tartly, earning a glare from Zachary.

They cleaned up the bar, picking up glasses, dishes, and trash. They sent drunk kats home by calling taxis to see they got home safely. One of them vacuumed while the other cleared the till. Just as Rick prepared to lock up, he spotted a familiar face accompanied by an unfamiliar one. Rick stood there watching as Dena and this unknown male talked animatedly with each other as they crossed the parking lot heading for the club door.

"Zachary, get your tail over here!" Rick called out behind him.

"What?! I was about to...Hey, who's that guy?" Zachary asked spotting the two.

"Don't know, but whoever he is, he's making Dena smile a lot. Think he could be her mate?" Rick asked curiously.

"No way! Dena said she's not even looking for one!" His brother nearly shouted his denial.

Zachary felt his stomach drop what if what Rick said was true? Could this male be Dena's mate? Zachary shook his head, 'No that can't be! Even if she did find her mate she would avoid him at all costs afterward. So then who is this guy?' He was tempted to go out there and find out but instead he steadily held the door until they reached him.

"You guys are never going to believe who this guy is." Dena said excitedly

"Your mate?" Rick asked but earned himself a jab to his side from Zachary.

"No, my brother!" Dena said watching both Zachary and Rick's faces as they stared in shock.

"Whoa, seriously?! That's great, Dena!" Zachary said in relief.

"Wow! I thought you were dead. This is wonderful…welcome to Club Imrie. I'm Rick and this is my older brother Zachary." Rick said quickly pushing himself in front of his brother.

"Thanks. Names Demon Feral. Zachary could I talk to you privately for a moment? Dena tells me you run this club?" Demon asked.

"Sure do. Rick! Lock up will ya?" Zachary told his brother before leading Demon over to the bar to talk.

While Dena and Rick talked, Demon and Zachary took seats at the bar, sitting beside each other. Now in better lighting, Zachary could see the family resemblance between Demon and Dena.

"I'll get to the point, Zachary. How much do you like my sister?" Demon asked bluntly.

"Uh…a lot." Zachary said, caught off guard by Demon's brusqueness

"A lot could mean anything. Do you love my sister?" Her brother demanded.

"I do, for a very long time, but she doesn't see me as anything but a friend."

Demon nodded. "And if she should find the one just for her. What would you do?" He asked seriously.

Zachary took a deep breath. "Nothing! I would do nothing, because I know Dena would be happy to find her mate even if she did avoid him until later on." He said firmly but sadly.

Demon was about to ask him another question when a ringing sound nearby caused him and Zachary to look toward Dena and Rick. Dena reached into the pocket of her coat and pulled out her cell phone.

"Feral here." Dena barked into it using her male voice. She listened for a moment before her face scrunched up into a scowl. "Again?... How many?... Right, I'll be there shortly." She growled unhappily and closed her phone.

Zachary got up from the bar stool to stand near her. "It's about the rogue, isn't it?" He asked with certainty.

"Yeah and this time he or she has killed seven Kats. Damn it!" Dena said rubbing the tension out of her neck. "Zachary, summon the hunters and have them meet me at the crime scene. Have them stay out of sight until my enforcers leave. I'll be sure you get a copy of the CSI report as soon as I get it." She told him.

Zachary nodded, "If I find out anything you'll be the first to know, after the elders are told."

"Thanks, Zach. Demon, I'm sorry to leave like this but I've got to go." Dena said turning to her brother.

Demon just waved his paw, "It's alright. It your job after all, go ahead and go. I'll take a taxi home. I want to speak with Zachary a bit more anyway."

"Okay, he can give you my cell number if you need to reach me anytime." She said smiling warmly.

"Will do." Her brother grinned.

With that, Dena cast her illusion spell. Demon stared musingly at his sister's impressive male disguise as she bid them goodbye. 'I wonder if I've covered my tracks well enough,' He thought a little nervously. He didn't want to give his plans away until he was ready. He knew what the elders would do to him if they ever found out he was the rogue. But it looked like he was in a better position than he had thought. With Dena on the Enforcers it meant he could get closer to the leaders, like Mayor Manx and the Deputy Mayor. And, now having met Zachary, he would be one step ahead of the Iriomkat hunters as well. Yes, things were definitely looking up for him.

He turned back to Zachary and asked, innocently, "What rogue are you talking about? Is there anything I can do to help?"


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Author's Note: Here's a dark story with a different kind of twist. Hope you like it. Ulyferal is acting as my beta for this story.

It was near late afternoon when dark, stormy clouds began to cover the sky over Megakat City. Katizens hurried inside to avoid the rain they thought was coming. But those that hid themselves among katkind could sense this was no ordinary storm. They moved even faster than the kats to get out of sight knowing that more than rain was coming and they didn't want to be involved in the trouble that was about to be visited on the city again. Very quickly, high winds began to shake parked cars, spin debris into the air and shove kat and Iriomkats alike off their feet.

At Enforcer Headquarters, Feral stood by her windows looking out at the storm, which grew darker and darker. She could feel a tingling wave of static energy run down her back. The energy was mixed with something else...magic! Dena didn't even need to be told who was about to show up, she already sensed the Pastmaster's particular brand of magic.

Growling Feral walked over to her coat tree, grabbed her coat and yanked it on. 'Perfect! As if I didn't have enough on my plate!' She thought bitterly as she quickly buttoned up the coat. She paced back to the window to wait for the official call of alarm. Less than a few minutes later her radio chimed.

"Feral here." Feral barked into it.

"Sir, the Pastmaster has been spotted at the Megakat Natural History Museum" Dispatch reported.

"Great, is there any word as to what his target is this time?" She asked.

"Not yet sir! He's only just been spotted going in from the roof. Dr. Sinian has been notified and on the alert to see what he's up to. The Deputy Mayor is there with her." He told his superior.

'Oh great! That's all I need, having the Deputy Mayor in the middle of this,' She thought angrily but answered her dispatch, "Understood. Send a ground squadron to secure the area. I'm on my way."

"Yes, sir!" He acknowledged and clicked off.

With the order going through, Feral headed for the elevators. She was soon running down the stairs to her car then racing with siren screaming for the museum. At the scene, she was pleased to see her enforcers were quickly securing the area. As she climbed out of her vehicle and sought her sergeant to get a report, she heard powerful engines roar overhead. She didn't need to look up to know the bane of her existence had arrived.

Snarling her displeasure, Feral turned to the Sergeant, "Report!"

"Dr. Sinian was able to tell us that the Pastmaster is at the vault where they store rare and valuable books. She had a suspicion he was after a book called the Avalon Spells recently acquired by the museum." The Sergeant said briskly.

"Good, hopefully we can keep this book out of the Pastmaster's paws." Feral said then rounded up a small group of enforcers to enter the building.

Feral and her small group entered the main foyer and were greeted by Dr. Sinian and Ms. Briggs.

"Commander Feral!" Ms. Briggs called out spotting the tall tom.

"You alright, Ms. Briggs, Dr. Sinian?" Feral asked glancing over the two for any type of injuries.

"Yes, but the Pastmaster…" Ms. Briggs began to say before Feral cut her off.

"Don't worry, Ms. Briggs. We'll handle it. Where is the vault located." She quickly asked Dr. Sinian.

"Right corridor, through the 'Employees Only' door at the end then go to the left until you get to the Rare Book Department. The vault is at the rear of the office." Dr. Sinian said quickly.

"Got it! Officers Soto and Mickson, escort Ms. Briggs and Dr. Sinian out of here. The rest of you stay with me." Feral ordered as she prepared to head off.

"Commander, whatever you do, don't let the Pastmaster get a hold of that book! If he gets it, that book will increase his magic a hundred times over." Dr. Sinian warned Feral.

"I'll keep that in mind." Feral said frowning as she and her group began hurrying down the indicated corridor.

Pushing through the employee door, Feral could hear the Pastmaster shouting and the sound of weapons fire. She suspected the SWAT Kats had already arrived ahead of her as she quickly reached the office door and burst in.

In a glance, Feral saw rows of desks and work benches and near the back was a heavy steel door that stood open. Fortunately for everyone, the SWAT Kats had, so far, been able to keep the Pastmaster from entering the vault. The Pastmaster was pressed back against a wall near the massive vault while the SWAT Kats were firing at him from behind the steel door.

Before Feral could take action, the Pastmaster noted he was trapped and fired his watch at the room's ceiling. A beam of purple light spat out causing the ceiling to explode. Feral slammed a paw into an enforcer behind her sending him back as she jumped forward just as the debris from the ceiling fell between them. A cloud of dust filled the air blocking her sight from her other officers.

"I got you now, SWAT Kats!" Pastmaster shouted pointing his watch at them again. This time he managed to hit Razor sending him flying back away from his partner and hitting a row of desks before fetching up against a far wall.

"Razor!" T-Bone yelled in fury at seeing his friend hurt.

Taking advantage of T-Bone's distraction, the Pastmaster again made for the vault. He wasn't fast enough though before T-Bone jumped in front of him. Behind him a blinded Feral heard T-Bone's yell and opened her eyes to see the tabby trying to block the ugly troll. She ran forward to help.

The Pastmaster snarled in fury but sensed someone was behind him. Daring to glance over his shoulder he saw Feral, covered in dust and coughing, running up to block his escape. He jumped to the side allowing Feral to plow into the SWAT Kat sending them both through the open door.

"Ha, stupid mortals!" The Pastmaster snorted derisively as he fired another purple beam at them.

The beam hit the pair and sent them flying toward the back of the vault. T-Bone hit a shelf that sent books flying off it to the floor. Feral landed across the tabby's waist as they both crashed to the ground, the books strewn around them.

The pair lay stunned and unable to move. Feral managed to raise her head a bit and saw the Pastmaster enter the vault and approach. His eyes were focused on a particular book that was just in front of her outstretched arm.

Realizing this was the book the Pastmaster wanted and forgetting Dr. Sinian's warning of how powerful it was, Feral lunged her arms out and grasped the book in her paws. The magical energy from the book of spells slammed into her. It immediately clashed with her own magic and shook her hard. There was a roaring in her ears and she could barely hear the outraged cry. It took all her effort to turn and look at the now hopping mad Pastmaster.

"No! That's my book! Hand it over! It's mine!" He screamed as he tried to grab the book from Feral's clutches.

Despite the overwhelming power racing through her, she managed to focus enough to wrench the Pastmaster's watch from his grasp and send him hurtling out of the vault using the magic pouring through her. To her dismay the magic also caused the vault door to close on them. She stared helplessly as it shut tight with a dull thud.

The book was still making her shake. Knowing it was safe now, she quickly let go of it. That was a mistake because as soon as her paws dropped the book it caused a backlash that knocked her out and dispelled her protective illusion.

Silence reigned for several minutes before T-Bone groaned his way to consciousness. His head throbbed and his ears rang. When he opened his eyes, he found the room was in darkness and completely quiet. From his prone position he turned on his helmet light and looked around.

"Aw Crud!" He muttered as he realized he was shut inside the vault. As he tried to sit up, it was then he realized something warm was pinning him down. Turning his head and looking down his body he saw a familiar uniform.

Grunting he reached down to shove the Commander off him but when his paws touched the body he jerked them back in shock. The body didn't feel right. Cautiously, he reached out again and carefully rolled the body over. It lay across his lower legs now so he could sit up. Shining his light down once more he choked in shock. Though the uniform was unmistakably the Commander's, the face and body definitely were not.

At first his mind simply couldn't accept what it was seeing. Thinking a female enforcer had been caught somehow in the cross fire and that Feral had landed somewhere else, he looked around the vault but there was no one else but them. Looking back down at the she-kat, he shook his head, 'No way! This has got to be some sort of dream!'

But there she was laying on his lap wearing the Commander's uniform. Gently T-Bone moved her off him and onto the floor. Now that he could see her better he could see some trace of the Commander in her features and body shape.

"Okay, T-Bone, now's the time to wake up." T-Bone muttered, hoping he had simply hit his head hard enough to hallucinate. He just couldn't believe what his eyes were telling him. He turned his attention away, looking around him again.

Suddenly the female moaned, snapping T-Bone out of his daze and forcibly dragging his attention back to the figure on the floor. Feral opened her eyes then jerked her head away as a bright light blinded her. When her vision cleared she carefully looked back and was able to see the bigger of the two SWAT Kats staring down at her in stunned disbelief. Frowning at his expression she pushed herself to a seated position and looked at him.

"What?" Feral snapped at him, so addled still that she didn't notice her voice was different.

"You're…you're…" T-Bone tried to say.

"Spit it out!" Feral snarled, now even more annoyed with the male.

"You're female!" The tabby finally blurted out.

Feral blinked at him in shock for a second before looking down at herself. She gasped as she realized the damn spell book had managed to dispel her illusion. Horrified and angry, she looked back at T-Bone who was studying her form from top to bottom. He was obviously still trying to deal with what his eyes were telling him when he reached out to touch her chest.

She slapped his paw away and hissed, "Watch it! Just because I'm in my true form doesn't mean you can just touch me!"

"Sorry! It's just…this is incredible. All this time you looked and acted male and you're obviously not. How is this possible?" He said in a daze.

Feral sighed, "I'm an Iriomkat, not your species at all. We are able to use magic to hide our appearance if we desire."

"What?! You don't look like one and why would you want to hide what you are anyway?" T-Bone asked in confusion. "And I thought Iriomkats were extinct."

"Centuries ago, to protect our species from complete annihilation by katkind, we learned how to hide ourselves. Our numbers have increased but we don't trust your kind so we remain hidden." She explained.

"Oh, I didn't know we treated you that badly." T-Bone said in shocked dismay. "Makes sense you would want to protect yourself. But this is modern times, don't you feel its okay to be seen now? I mean just in Megakat City alone we've seen stranger things and have accepted them rather easily." He questioned her curiously.

"That doesn't mean you would accept us that easily." Feral said dismissively.

"I won't argue with you about it and I'm still having a hard time believing what you're telling me even though the evidence is in front of my nose. That still doesn't explain why you took a male form and why you wanted to be an enforcer when you could have taken any other job and no one would be the wiser." T-Bone persisted still not able to believe the kat in front of him.

"I'll answer your questions only if you promise me one thing!" Feral finally huffed impatiently.

"What is it?" The tabby asked cautiously.

"That you don't tell anyone not even Razor what I really am!" Feral said seriously looking into T-Bone's masked eyes. She was taking a gamble on this Kat's integrity but something in her told her she could trust his word.

T-Bone could tell there was more to this than she was saying. He still had trouble believing that she wasn't a kat or even male. This was obviously a serious matter and if she was telling the truth, the fate of an entire race rested on his shoulders. He couldn't betray the trust Feral had already given him in telling as much as she had. With a sigh he gave his word.

"I promise." T-Bone said solemnly

She sighed inwardly in relief. She began to unbutton her coat and pull it off then unbuttoned her shirt.

T-Bone's eyes widened in embarrassed shock. "What the heck are you doing?"

"I'm proving to you that what I've been saying is the truth." She huffed as she pulled down her shirt and turned her back to him to reveal her fur.

T-Bone stared at the strangely marked fur before him. Dusky dark spots in dense longitudinal rows tented into bands of seven dark stripes that ran along her neck and back. Slowly he reached out and touched her. He let out a small gasp at how soft and silky her fur was. Mesmerized by its texture he couldn't help stroking her back, tracing the stripes. He felt her shiver under his touch and it effected him in a way he couldn't explain.

Feral bit her lip to keep from moaning in pleasure from the tabby's caress on her back. She couldn't understand why this tom's touch was sending arousing tingles of pleasure through her body. Confused, she pulled forward, breaking the contact. She quickly pulled her shirt back up over her shoulders and turned to look at T-Bone.

"Now do you believe me?" She demanded.

"It can't be! Those markings could mean anything!" He said shaking his head.

Feral hissed in frustration and raised a paw into the air. Turning her paw over she formed a ball of energy on her palm. "Is this proof enough now?" She said in annoyance.

T-Bone stared at her palm in amazement even after she had reabsorbed the energy and dropped her paw. "Crud! So Iriomkats are still around and you use magic to change your appearance, heh?" He said more to himself than her. "Okay, say I believe this, answer my earlier question...why did you make yourself look male and join the enforcers?"

"I had my own reasons for being an enforcer that are none of your business. As for changing my female appearance...you know the enforcers are mostly run by males. To get in without all the prejudice and hassle, I simply changed my appearance. I went through the academy and moved up the ranks all on my own." She said with a hint of pride.

She began to button up her shirt and T-Bone couldn't help letting his eyes stray over the lovely expanse of female anatomy as it was being rapidly covered up. He was glad she couldn't see his eyes or he would have been mortified if she caught him sneaking a peek. He felt his face burn at where his thoughts were going and quickly looked away from her.

"Ulysses Feral, is that your real name?" T-Bone asked, keeping his eyes averted.

"Not exactly, Ulysses was my father's name. I took it when I joined the enforcers. My last name is correct but my first name is Dena." She said briskly as she slipped her coat back on and buttoned it.

When she looked up from her task, Dena noticed that the SWAT Kat was no longer looking at her. 'Well it is quite a shock for him' She thought. She reached out to touch his arm to draw his attention back to her. The moment her fingers touched his wrist a jolt of energy whipped through both of them. It didn't hurt but it did get T-Bone's attention firmly back on her.

He studied her more closely, now that the shock had worn off. What he saw was a beautiful female with a heart shaped face, dark hair falling softly to her shoulders, a slender neck, and well-toned athletic body under the form fitting uniform that left nothing to the imagination. She was built nearly the same way as her male persona but with definite feminine curves. His mind strayed a moment into fantasy, wondering what she would look like without her clothes and to have this powerful looking female moaning her pleasure under him. Stunned at himself, he quickly shoved the unwanted thoughts and feelings away in his mind. His face burned with heat.

Dena was also having some problems as she studied the undeniably well built tom. Despite the mask, she could tell he had a handsome face, his body clearly showed an attention to physical exercise. His broad chest practically strained the G-suit that fit him like a glove. His arms and legs were thick and powerful. Her mind took an erotic detour, imaging what it would be like to have him pinning her down and thrusting hard within her as her legs wrapped around that powerful torso. She gulped in shock and yanked her paw and eyes away. Her face burning with embarrassment and confusion.

"Anyway, the book. Where it is?" T-Bone asked quickly to give them a chance to recover from their shock at what had just past between them.

She welcomed the change in subject as she answered, "Right behind you. You are going to have to pick it up since just touching it caused me to lose my illusion. It clashes with my magic in a really bad way."

T-Bone eyed her in surprise but didn't argue as he picked up the indicated book. He carefully placed it back on the shelf behind them and began to pick up the other books as well. She helped him with the task and soon the books were back on the shelf though they obviously didn't know if they were in the right order. Dr. Sinian's people could take care of that.

Just as they finished their self-imposed task, there was a loud rap on the door. T-Bone moved quickly over to it.

"T-Bone! T-Bone can you hear me?!" Razor's barely heard voice came through the thick steel.

"I hear you Razor!" T-Bone shouted at the top of his lungs making Dena wince. "Get us out of here!"

"I'm on it." Razor shouted back.

Turning toward Dena, T-Bone started to say, "You'd better…" but halted when her form wavered a moment and the male he knew so well stood there once more.

"What?" Feral asked.

"Nothing."

"T-Bone…remember your promise." She reminded him.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I doubt they'd believe me anyway." T-Bone reassured her.

"Thank you."

T-Bone blinked in surprise, all the time he'd known the Commander, the hard-nosed enforcer had never said thank you. But then he realized he had never really known this person before either. Not knowing why he did it, T-Bone took a deep inhale through his nose to take in her scent. She smelled like the air before a storm mixed with rain with an underlying hint of the exotic, definitely not kat. She attracted him like no other she-kat had.

Dena also found herself taking in his scent. She just couldn't understand why she found him so attractive. She smelled a musky odor that was spicy mixed with the scent of jet fuel and other metallic odors. His scent sent a thrill of pleasure through her yet again. Her mating instinct began to take notice to her complete bewilderment.

Two confused and attracted felines blinked in the bright light when the vault door opened suddenly. Waiting there for them were Razor, Dr. Sinian and Ms. Briggs. All looking quite relieved to see them both alright.

"What happened out here?" T-Bone asked immediately.

"The Pastmaster got away." Razor said with a sigh of disgust.

"Is the book still here?" Dr. Sinian interrupted anxiously.

"Yes, he didn't get it!" Feral answered immediately.

Dr. Sinian sighed with relief and stepped past the pair to take a look at her precious book. As Feral was speaking with Dr. Sinian and he was talking to Razor, he couldn't help but look at the Commander again, still unable to shake the fact that wasn't a male standing there.

"T-Bone?" Callie asked hesitantly.

"Yes, Ms. Briggs?" T-Bone asked, quickly turning his attention to her.

"You sure you're alright? Commander Feral didn't do anything to you did he?" Callie asked curiously. T-Bone seemed to be behaving oddly.

When Callie said 'he', T-Bone was sorely tempted to correct her but stopped himself and said instead, "I'm fine and no, he didn't do anything while we were in there except to help me pick up the books that had fallen from the shelf." He said easily.

Not looking convinced, Ms. Briggs frowned a bit then nodded and left it at that. T-Bone was relieved she wasn't going to press the matter as he turned to his partner.

"Let's head out of here, buddy." He said heading for the door.

"With you on that one." Razor said following him.

Just before he stepped through the door, T-Bone glanced back and saw Callie lecturing Dena. The Commander seemed to be only half listening as her eyes caught his a moment. He broke the contact and continued on down the corridor. He didn't realize he was silently mulling over what had happened in the vault until his partner spoke up.

"Hey buddy! What's wrong?" Razor asked noting how quiet his friend had become on the walk out to the jet.

"Nothing, why do you ask?" T-Bone asked readying the jet for take off.

"Usually you are nasty tempered and full of noteworthy comments after being stuck with the Commander but this time you're completely silent. Come to think of it you were both pretty closed mouth. So what really happened in there?" Razor asked, perplexed.

"Kinda hard to argue with an unconscious kat, Razor. He came to just before you knocked. Once he realized the book was safe, we picked the books up, put them on the shelf then you hollered at us. That's it." T-Bone answered with a shrug.

He didn't think that was all, but seeing that T-Bone wasn't about to say anything else about the matter, Razor kept quiet as the jet took off. He sighed to himself, whatever had gone on between the two antagonists, T-Bone wasn't ready to say and Razor had to trust that his friend would tell him when he felt ready too. So he shoved it to the back of his mind and let it be.

After ridding herself of the Deputy Mayor, Feral returned to Enforcer Headquarters to file a report on the incident. Waiting for her on her desk was the CSI report on the seven dead Kats that the Rogue had definitely killed in the same manner as Derek Anderson. The case had become personal for her when she had learned that one of the seven victims had been someone she had known years ago.

Hailey Rockwell was the social worker assigned to her and Demon when their parents were killed. She had been warm and understanding and had tried her best to keep the twins together and was unhappy when she couldn't. Dena hadn't seen Mrs. Rockwell in years but to know she had died in such a way was saddening. She couldn't understand why the Rogue had killed such a nice Kat.

After reading the report and viewing the crime scene photos, she made a duplicate set of the data. She forwarded the originals to the CSI lab with Steel. She had cruised the building a bit to listen to the scuttlebutt floating around. What she overheard was two suggestions of what they were looking for; one was a possible serial killer using electricity and the second was, Hard Drive losing his mind and killing Kats. She was relieved that nothing about Iriomkats was uttered anywhere. She didn't relax her vigil though.

After quitting time, she dragged her coat on then hid the copies inside an inner pocket, locked her desk and office then bid her secretary goodnight. Climbing into her car, she headed for Club Imrie instead of home. She needed to get this data to Zachary as soon as possible. The elders would not be pleased to learn the Rogue had struck again and killed so many this time.

Arriving at the club parking lot, Dena carefully checked around to see if anyone was watching her before removing her male spell and temporarily causing an illusion of female clothing to cover her before leaving her vehicle. She entered the club without any one noticing her as she headed for the storage closet. There she headed for the private room as she passed the guards and went through the hidden door.

Dena spotted an empty table in the busy, filled room. Sitting down, she brought forth the data and studied it once more. She knew it would be sometime before Zachary and Rick could take time to see her so she wanted to look over the data more thoroughly.

She was so engrossed in reading that she didn't note the Iriomkat coming up behind her, setting down a tray of food and plopping into a seat across from her with a tray of his own. She blinked at the tray and looked up into the face of her brother. He had brought her a fish sandwich with fries and a glass of milk.

"Hungry, Dena?" Her brother asked solicitously.

"Starving. I didn't even get lunch today." Dena said gratefully, as she hungrily picked up the sandwich and bit into it.

"That Pastmaster guy...does he show up whenever he wants?" Demon asked taking a bite of his own sandwich.

She grimaced. "Yeah. Since he can move through time and uses magic, he can do anything he wants." She said sourly.

"That means Dark Kat, Dr. Viper, and the Metallikats all exist?" He asked incredulously.

"They sure do. Shocking isn't it?" Dena said looking at him in mild amusement.

"I thought they were nothing but made up stories. Just something the medics were making up because they were bored." Demon said unhappily.

"Unfortunately not. So what are you doing here so late?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, Zachary gave me a job here. I'm working as bartender." Demon said mildly.

"That's great, Demon. You enjoy it?" Dena asked, pleased her brother had found a job so quickly.

"Sort of…I'm not used to having to be so social but it is quite fun to hear some of the stories the kats and Iriomkats have. Hey, what are those?" Demon asked seeing the reports.

"CSI reports about the Rogue kills." Dena said pushing the reports away.

"Can I read one?" Demon asked already eyeing one.

"I guess so." Dena said seeing no reason why he shouldn't.

Demon reached out and pulled the file named Rockwell toward him. He read the report thoroughly looking for anything that would lead to him. To his pleasure, the report had a lot of data but none of it could be tied back to anyone. Satisfied, Demon closed the folder and set it side.

"I can't believe Mrs. Rockwell was killed and no one saw a thing." Demon said faking his dismay.

"Unfortunately, that is true in all these cases. But hopefully Zachary and the hunters will find something at the crime scenes or in the reports." Dena said with a sigh.

"What about the elders? I heard from Rick that Elder Oliver has been giving you a hard time." Demon asked in concern.

Dena sighed again, " He's been giving me a hard time since I met him. I don't know what it is about him…but he just rubs me the wrong way."

"And he never gives you a clear reason why?" Demon asked but Dena shook her head 'no'.

"As a teen, whenever he spoke with me, he was always unsatisfied with me. He does everything he can to discredit or belittle everything I do. I just ignore him now. I make sure my information is complete and glad he's just one of the Elders. It's no big deal." She said easily not wanting her brother to be concerned.

Demon frowned, this Oliver seemed to love to cause trouble for Dena. He wondered what it was that would cause one of the elders to not like her?

"Ever just try to talk to him?" He asked curiously.

"Many times but I could never get through his thick head. He was the one who tried to prevent me from joining the enforcers." She said with a snort of derision.

Demon nodded, "Ahh...so why did you join the enforcers anyway?"

"Two reasons, mostly. Because I saw how our father loved the job and because the robbers that killed our parents were never caught. I want to be the one who arrests them if they ever show up again." Dena said firmly.

'That's right. The kats that killed our parents were never caught. I understand better now about why she joined.' He thought grimly.

"Okay, I understand. Heh! I saw you on the news today. That Ms. Briggs really gave it to you, didn't she?" Demon said, changing the subject again.

Dena rolled her eyes, "Its always like that. The SWAT Kats show up and save the day. She thanks them then turns to me to chew me out about not doing the right things."

"Why? You seemed to be doing things the best you can. Why would she chew you out for that?" Demon said affronted.

"Cause she has a thing for a pair of SWAT Kats. I swear every time I'm close to her, I can smell her becoming aroused whenever Razor or T-Bone are near." Dena said in disgust.

" You think Ms. Briggs is sleeping with one of them?" Demon asked with a smirk.

"It's possible but I don't like to get involved with such things. Read to much into it and you'll end up with the wrong answer." Dena said.

"But if she is sleeping with one of them and just doing this to you because of that then what she's doing is wrong! Dena you need to confront her about that!" Demon insisted.

"And say what? Ms. Briggs are you sleeping with either T-Bone or Razor or both of them? Yeah, I can see how that would turn out." Dena said sarcastically. "Besides, its not just her I have to deal with but Mayor Manx too. He doesn't want anything destroyed that could ruin his chances of making money. So basically, they have control but I don't. Even though it looks like I do." Dena said with a sigh.

"So they are the master and you're some sort of puppet? And if things don't go the way they want they blame you?" Demon said questioningly, feeling his anger rise.

Dena glanced at him then away thinking for a moment, " If you look at it that way then, yeah, they do."

"As long as you're happy with your job it must be easy putting up with the mayor and deputy mayor?" Demon asked giving his sister a small smile.

"I am and you're right. Doing the job you like makes dealing with them a lot easier." She said smiling back.

They spent the rest of their evening talking about other things. A lot of it was spent catching up on the past. Dena told Demon about all the events that had happened in Megakat City since he had left. She told him about Dark Kat, the Metallikats, and how Dr. Viper came to be from some accident. Demon listened intently, taking notes in his mind. He knew he would have to get rid of these threats if his kind were to take over the city. She told him a little of what her life had been like after they were separated as well.

Once Dena finished, Demon took his turn relating his own stories about his travels since he left the city behind. The jobs he'd held. He mentioned the Iriomkats he'd met and his time with his mate. He carefully avoided the time after Amy's death and what he'd been up to since. He noted that Dena was fascinated by his stories and wished she could go see the places he'd been but she was too tied to the city to leave.

"Ya know, Dena. On your next vacation time how about I take you to one of my favorite towns?" Demon suggested.

"I would love that. Do you think we could visit your mate's home town?" Dena asked carefully

"Sure, something tells me if Amy were still here, you and her would have got along well." Demon said with a sad smile.

"What was it like?" Dena asked hesitantly.

"What was what like?" Demon asked puzzled by his sister's cryptic question.

"What I meant was…how did you know that Amy was your mate? What did it feel like when you saw her and how did your mating instinct react?" Dena asked feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Well, when I first saw her, I felt my body react to her presence then it was like my instinct slowly started to wake up and tell me that Amy was the one." Demon said slowly as he remembered that long ago day.

"How did your body react?"

"When she first touched me, we felt a jolt of attraction race through us. After that, things just fell into place for us. Why do you ask?" He questioned her, cocking his head.

Dena look more embarrassed now, "Ah, no reason! I was just wanting to know that's all!"

Demon looked at her as if he didn't quite believe her, "Fine. But Dena, whenever you find your mate you'll know. Trust me you'll know."

"Thanks, bro." She said softly.

"No problem sis." He smiled warmly.

Dena fell silent but her mind went back to what had happened earlier in the day. 'I do trust my instinct to tell who my mate is. I'm just not too happy with who I think it is.' She thought worriedly.

She didn't want to believe it was possible that the SWAT Kat known as T-Bone was her mate. It just didn't seemed possible, her instinct said otherwise though. 'No, it can't be!? Why him?! Of all the toms out there why him?' Dena wanted to groan out loud but she remembered what Demon had said about his mating. Her encounter matched his description. She was just having to much difficulty accepting the truth. It troubled her for the rest of the night and prevented her from getting any real sleep.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

The moon was rising high over Megakat City. Most of its Katizens were asleep. It's silvery glow poured into a small bedroom window at the Megakat Military Salvage Yard. Revealed in its ghostly light were clothing scattered around the room, comic books neatly stacked on a bookshelf and a full sized bed pressed against a wall.

Laying sprawled on the bed was a powerfully built tiger tabby who was breathing heavily and panting. His bedding lay half on the bed and half on the floor. He moaned and twitched in his sleep, a prominent erection tenting his underwear. As his breathing picked up, he stretched his arms out as if to reach for someone in his dreams.

The tiger stripe tom kat known as Chance Furlong a.k.a T-Bone, was having a very familiar erotic dream, one he'd been having nearly every night for several weeks.

It would always start off as a normal kind of dream, one where he, as T-Bone, would be working on the Turbokat or out saving the city as usual. But then it would morph into that moment when he had been alone with Commander Feral in that vault.

And it wasn't the male illusion, but Feral's true form...that incredibly alluring female. The insults and anger would change in his dreams to a hot steamy kiss which would lead to even more erotic things.

He would push her to the ground or desk if there was one or any other surface that was handy. Clothing would be removed quickly as things heated up between them. He would fondle Dena's breasts, both his paws cupping and rolling her nipples between his index fingers and thumbs. Hearing her hiss in pleasure, arching her chest out as a silent plea for more made him hotter. He would continue his kneading of her breasts then lean his head down and begin to use his tongue to lick the areola around one of the nipples while not actually touching it.

Her fingers would be entwined in his fur as she started to stroke and caress his head and ears making him purr loudly as her touches scratched his sensitive spots at the base of his ears. While her other hand would stroke up and down his back stopping from time to time to rub that spot at the base of his tail making his kathood even harder. He would thrust his hips, letting his member rub against her flat stomach hissing his own pleasure.

Once the areas around her nipples had been covered with his saliva he would take one nipple into his mouth sucking like a hungry kitten. His tongue would lick around the nipple and over it till he would let go just to blow air on it making her groan hotly then mew. He would bestow the same attention on the second breast. She would be so hot her hips would bump and rub against his sex.

He groaned as ripples of pleasure ran up his back from her demanding motion. He leaned back to kiss her mouth then neck and work his way down her body as his paws caressed her back and sides till he reached her inner thighs with both paws and tongue.

Parting them, his nose was hit with the heady scent of her arousal making his head spin and member throb. Rumbling in his chest, he parted her thighs gently then put his face close so that he could begin to lick her soft folds that were already dripping for him. He could feel her shake from the waves of pleasure that rushed over her body from his attention.

He increased his attention to her clitoris by using his tongue to swirl around the nub in small circles. Dena cried out in wild abandon, her body shaking and writhing from the extreme pleasure he was giving her. He had to hold down her thighs to keep her from bouncing.

When he had firm control of her, he took two fingers and gently inserted them into her hot channel. Now as he continued to lavish attention with his tongue on her outer clitoral area, his tongue began a thrusting motion.

She shrieked at this new intensity, her fingers gripped his head tightly. Her back arched upward as she tossed her head side to side as the pleasure grew and grew. Dena was reaching the point of no return from T-Bone's mouth and fingers driving her higher and higher. She couldn't take anymore and screamed her climax. He stayed where he was even as he felt her inner walls tighten around his fingers as she came.

Removing his fingers he tasted her honey offering, licking up every trace of it and enjoying the wonderful taste. Smacking his lips he moved back up to her face and kissed her deeply. She moaned and returned the kiss, opening her mouth and letting her tongue trace his lips tasting herself. He opened his mouth giving her tongue access. Their tongues met and dueled.

The heat built up again between them. They twirled their tongues one last time before parting, a small string of saliva connecting them for a moment.

In a swift movement she had him laying on his back licking and nuzzling his face before moving down. Her tongue licked his chest as she moved down to his nipple. Her tongued licked over it as her paws moved up and down his sides. She licked his nipple teasingly before taking it into her mouth sucking as one of her paws move to his other nipple twirling it between her index finger and middle finger. He moaned loudly, his own paws reaching and stroking her back up and down stopping at the base of her tail and rubbing it.

She mewed in pleasure, raising her tail a bit but then switched her attention back to him and the other nipple. He hissed in pleasure again as he felt her lick and suck before moving down his washboard abs. Her fingers caressed his chest as she licked and nipped a path down to his groin. He parted his legs allowing her better access to his kathood as it stood up proudly in front of her.

Just as he had done to her, she didn't touch his member right away, rather she teased for a bit. She drew her claws lightly down each thigh which made him growl and hiss in hot pleasure. Grinning, she then cupped him, rolling his ball sack between her fingers. He sighed and raised his hips, feeling a ripple of delicious tension race up his spine. Pleased at the response she was getting, she finally leaned down and licked and sucked the space between his balls and erection, he shuddered. She could hear him hiss and groan loudly at what she was doing.

His member throbbed painfully as pre-cum began to weep out. His claws clutched at whatever was beneath him and begged her to hurry up. She quit teasing and sat up. Reaching out a paw, she took him in her paw and began a smooth stroking movement up and down, never touching his tip. Her response to his now weeping member was to lick the tip then switch to using her thumb to rub it. He didn't think he could take much more. He ached to kiss her, clutch her to his body, and bury himself within her hot channel.

She enjoyed his musky scent and hearing him groan and hiss in pleasure. 'Time to finish this,' she thought as she swooped down and took him to the hilt. He cried out and bucked nearly choking her. She held his hips much as he had done and began to gently suck and use her tongue to lick as she went up and down on him. He hissed as his pleasure spiraled higher and higher until his sack tightened and his member swelled even bigger before finally roaring his climax.

She lapped and sucked every bit of his offering up, cleaning him completely. She let him go with a little pop and a kiss to the tip in parting. She crawled back up to his face so that she could kiss him and he could taste himself in her mouth. T-Bone moaned into the kiss as he had Dena lay side by side. As they rested, their paws continued to stroke and caress each other as they traded gentle kisses and nuzzles, both purring and rumbling in their chests in pleased satiation.

It wasn't long before they were ready for another round. This time though, he flipped her onto her stomach then raised her hips. Smiling warmly, she raised her tail welcoming him. He growled lustfully as he laid on top of her and slid home into her waiting wet sex. They groaned in unison when their bodies joined. They stilled, savoring the moment before she wiggled her hips signaling her readiness. He groaned in response.

He pulled all the way out except for the tip then thrust deeply into her. She mewed out loud. Panting in excitement, T-Bone repeated that for a few more times before picking up the pace. He gripped her hips and set up a rapid rhythm.

The pleasure built in a shockwave of pleasurable waves as they moved closer and closer to the end. They were panting and sweating heavily as he thrust harder and faster into her. He leaned completely on her and wrapped his arms around her body as their climax reached out to them. He groaned as he felt her inner walls begin to tighten around him. Seconds later she clamped down on him squeezing hard. She screamed her climax with him only moments behind.

His own roaring awakened him from the dream. He lay dazed, panting, and sticky. His body still trembled from his release. After a moment, he was recovered enough to sit up and hiss in disgust at his messy state.

"Crud! Not again!" Chance said getting out of bed to remove his boxers.

He was even more unhappy to smell the scent of rutting in the air. Grunting he tossed his boxers into his laundry basket then went to his dresser for a new pair. Putting them on, Chance turned and left his room.

The dreams had been harmless at first, just images of Dena and him in the vault but over time they became more erotic. He started it by wanting her more than she wanted him. She resisted his attentions but gradually she stopped resisting until they were doing it every time he fell asleep. They were pleasant at first but then they began to become more intense and realistic.

He found himself wanting her not just when he was asleep but when he was awake. He couldn't understand why this obsession with Feral was happening. She was beautiful, for sure, but she was still the Commander for Crud sake!

"Man, I wish I knew what was going on! I've never been so obsessed with a she-kat this badly before and the dreams...!" Chance said out loud, shaking his head in confused dismay. He'd reached the kitchen and retrieved a can of milk from the fridge.

Opening the can, Chance took a deep drink trying to drown out the last of the dream. He let his mind drift back to what Dena had said about herself and her kind. Because of that encounter, he had done some research on the Iriomkats. It turned out they were a fairly peaceful race that only used their deadly abilities to protect their mates, kits and themselves from harm. He'd seen nothing about a Kat dying from the type of energy they used and since they no longer used that ability anyway, according to the reports he'd read anyway, he wondered why they continued to hide themselves from Katkind.

'Maybe they've been hiding so long they can't or won't risk a repeat of what happened to them before and still don't feel safe.' He thought musingly, dumping the can in the trash. Whatever the reason, he had to keep their secret. It made him sad to think Katkind had treated the Iriomkats so badly, enough that they wouldn't come out of hiding even now, centuries later. Sighing Chance headed back upstairs to his room, hoping this time he could get some sleep.

Unknown to him, Dena had found herself waking up from the very same dream. Grumbling under her breath she got out of bed, took off her panties and undershirt, and took them to her bathroom to toss in the laundry basket.

"Damn dreams!" Dena said her nose picking up her aroused scent.

She understood why the dreams were happening. The empathy link between her and T-Bone was forming but it wouldn't be complete till she and T-Bone actually mated during her heat cycle.

Sighing in frustration, she headed back to bed but not before putting on a new set of under things. Crawling back into bed, she lay staring up at the ceiling. She was grateful the weeks had passed without a major emergency that would have brought the SWAT Kats. She didn't think she could handle being near him right now.

She sighed and rolled over, her mind remembering how he smelled. His scent was a heavy male musk mixed with jet fuel and a dash of various metals. She moaned at the memory and could feel her body responding once more. Realizing what was happening, Dena snapped her eyes open.

'Kat's Alive! Stop thinking about him! It will only bring you trouble!' Dena told herself firmly. Sighing deeply Dena closed her eyes and tried to make her mind blank so that she could get some much needed sleep.

In the early morning, Demon woke to clouds covering the dawn sky. It looked like more rain was in the forecast. He loved the rain, it always seemed to wash everything that was wrong away. Giving the world a fresh, clean look and smell.

He climbed out of bed and went to the window. He stared out at the gathering clouds and watched as the sky got darker. He opened the window and stuck out his arm. He could feel the static electricity raised by the coming storm. He could tell it would be at least a couple of hours before it actually rained.

With the house no longer needing repairs, Demon closed the window. With the house no longer needing repairs he was free to return to bed and catch a little more sleep. He would need it since he was scheduled to work tonight at the bar.

Zachary had told him there would be another meeting tonight concerning the killings by the rogue Iriomkat. The hidden gathering room would be packed with his kind. He was looking forward to seeing more of his kind after being in close confines with those disgusting Kats.

'Not much longer now. All I have to do is find like-minded Iriomkats and convince them that we would make better rulers of this world than those worthless animals. That it isn't right that we hide while they run everything.' Demon thought with burning hatred then sighed and fell into a light sleep.

He woke a few hours later, hungry. Putting on a t-shirt and a pair of old jeans, Demon made his way to the kitchen. He started to make breakfast when he realized it was nearly lunch and made a sandwich with milk instead. When he finished, he cleaned up a bit then decided to go out, needing a bit of fresh air and exercise.

He strolled along the sidewalk in his neighborhood, which he was pleased to note was quiet this time of day because most Kats were at work. He soon reached a familiar spot, it was a small park where his mother used to take he and Dena to play.

Smiling a bit, he crossed the street to the park, wanting to see the old play ground. He saw the swing sets, jungle gym and sand box and watched as some kittens played. He took a seat on a nearby bench and lay back with his arms stretched out along the top of it. He sat there a long while and watched as mothers and sometimes fathers took their kittens home. He closed his eyes and let his mind drift. A warm memory swam to the surface. It had been a hot summer day and he and Dena had come here to play. Their mother had bought them ice cream.

Sighing, he let the images of the past fade then opened his eyes. A pair of grey eyes met his when he looked around. A she-kat around his age gave him a flirting smile and a wave. Keeping his face cold and remote, he held in his growl of disgust and got up and left. He knew giving an interested she-kat the cold shoulder would discourage them from bothering him. He hated it when they flirted with him. The only one that had ever mattered in his life was his lost mate. No one else would ever replace Amy.

The storm had moved in and it was pouring when Club Imri closed early for the night. They told their Kat patrons that there was a leak in the roof that needed repairing. Very quickly the club was emptied of Kats and the Iriomkats soon began arriving.

The hidden room was packed with as many Iriomkats that could attend this special meeting. The room hummed with multiple voices as they waited for the Elders to arrive. In a far corner of the room, Dena, Demon, Zachary, and Rick sat together and discussed what they had found out about the rogue, the evidence found at the scenes, and what was being done to find the culprit.

Dena wasn't happy about the meeting. They didn't have much to go on, which would please Oliver to no end. It was just too soon in the investigation to have anything concrete to say. Oliver would jump all over that and say that Dena had jumped the gun. She really didn't need him to have more ammunition to use against her.

Demon could feel his sister's tension and nerves. He laid a comforting paw on along her shoulders and gave the far one a gentle squeeze and a nonverbal smile of commiseration. She gave him a wane smile in return.

"It'll be alright, Dena. Just present it the best you can. There's nothing you can do about their reactions to what you have to say." Zachary said encouragingly, knowing just what she was thinking.

"Thanks. Zachary...Ricky you ready?" Dena asked putting her papers in order again.

"Ready. Just signal us to let us know when to give our reports." Rick reassured her with a smile.

Dena nodded looking up to see the Elders file in, taking their seats. She took a deep breath to further calm her nervous tension.

"Dena Feral, please come up and give us your findings." Elder Serena called out loudly to be heard. As soon as she spoke the room went completely silent.

Gripping the reports in her paw, Dena got up and walked to the lectern set before the Elders. Zachary and Rick coming up behind her to stand. Setting the report down and opening it, she looked up at the five Elders; Serena Elrice, Oliver Brow, followed by a black kat with white markings on his face and paws with yellow eyes his name was Roy Cochrane, next was Jade Hughes a calico female with jade green eyes then David Willows a gray tabby with swirls and possessing one blue eye and one green. All their eyes were watching her, Zachary and Rick.

"These are the reports from the investigating officer and CSI. Unfortunately, we were unable to identify the rogue nor have there been any leads as to his or her whereabouts. I..." Dena began to say before being interrupted by Oliver.

"Then you have nothing to show us?" He snapped rudely. "How do we know this rogue is real? It could simply be that Hard Drive character is doing all of this." He growled ominously down at her.

"It doesn't fit Hard Drive's M.O. which is firmly established and on record. He is a known techno thief. None of these victims had anything to do with military secrets. The pictures clearly show something or someone else is responsible. If you…" Dena snapped back coldly but was again cut off.

"I see nothing! Nothing that shows that…!" Oliver spit angrily, but he too was cut off.

"Enough Oliver! We are here to get at the truth about this rogue. All of us decide what's important or not in this case, not you alone." Serena said firmly to her colleague.

He wasn't cowed by the others angry demeanor's as he blindly stuck to his obstructive stance. "Look at the evidence, Serena! If you can't see it then you're blind." Oliver hissed at her.

"It is you who is blind, Oliver. I can clearly see what Dena is saying. It's you that refuse to listen." Roy said picking up a picture and tapping it pointedly.

"Come now, Roy. This is clearly a game of goose! You can't seriously entertain the idea that there's a rogue..." Oliver snapped sarcastically at his fellow elder. This time Davie interrupted.

"The evidence clearly points to someone else and we know that Kats don't possess the ability to use energy as a weapon. The ones that have, use a weapon of some kind, like Hard Drive's coat. The only other conclusion that can be drawn is that we have a rogue on our paws. We now have to find a way to locate this person as quickly as we can or Katkind will find out about us." He said firmly, giving Oliver a look full of animosity.

Oliver grunted but said nothing more. This time it was Jade who spoke up. She'd had enough of Oliver's obstinate behavior and decided to put an end to it.

"Enough! I think we should move on to the hunter's reports! Based on those, we can determine if the hunt continues." Jade said irately.

"Elder Jade is right. Let us hear the rest of the reports." Serena said, grateful to Jade for moving the meeting forward.

Dena stepped to the side as Zachary and Rick stepped forward. Elder Roy nodded to them to begin. Zachary prepared to speak as the Commander of the Hunters. Rick, as his second in command, stood by to add his support if needed.

Zachary avoided looking at Dena, he didn't want to give Oliver anything more to attack her with. Clearing his throat, he spoke briskly, "All my hunters have been to each of the seven crime scenes. Based on our experience, the investigator and CSI's reports, there is no doubt in our minds that a rogue is responsible. Unfortunately, we still cannot determine what sex that person is and we don't know the reason for their attacks on these Kats. The victims seem totally random at this time."

"What proof is there that this is a possible rogue?" Oliver demanded nastily, staring down at Zachary.

"We were able to collect a cell phone from the crime sense that had recorded the attack on the group of male Kats before the owner himself was killed. The group were just common thugs." Zachary said triumphantly, giving Oliver a hard stare back.

"Zachary do you have this cell phone with you now?" Jade asked, wanting to see this.

"Yes ma'am." Zachary said pulling out the cell phone and carrying it up to the stage and handing it to Elder Jade.

"If you would give me your reports, Dena. We'll take them and this evidence to our chambers and look at it. We'll be back in a bit and give you our decision on what action to take next." Elder Serena said ending the session. Dena walked quickly up and handed her file to Elder Serena. She nodded her thanks then she rose to leave, followed by her fellow Elders as they made for a conference chamber located behind the stage.

With a deep sigh of relief, Dena knew it would be awhile before the Elders would return. She had a feeling they would vote to continue the hunt, so she felt justified in relaxing a bit.

Zachary apparently felt the same way because he said, "Everything's going to be okay. It was plain good luck that we found that cell phone before the CSI Team did. With that as evidence, even Oliver won't be able to twist the vote." He came to her side and stroked her arm comfortingly.

The reaction he got wasn't the one he was normally used to. Dena jerked back from him, slapping his paw and hissing at him. Both Zachary and Rick gaped at her in shocked surprise. Zachary had touched her that way countless times. Her reaction was stunning.

Dena blushed in dismay as she realized why she'd reacted so negatively to Zachary's friendly touch but she didn't want to tell them the reason was a certain tabby Kat, so quickly made up a different excuse for her behavior.

"I'm sorry, Zachary! I didn't mean to snap at you like that. Everything at work has been really crazy plus I have the mayor and deputy mayor breathing down my neck about all this." Dena said apologetically, hoping they would believe her.

Zachary shook his head. "Don't apologize. I understand your job can be really stressful, more so when Manx and Briggs are on your case." He said soothingly.

"Thank you for being so understanding." She said in relief.

"Dena, what do Mayor Manx and Deputy Briggs know?" Rick asked

"They're worried about this killer just like everyone else, more so because of how the victims were killed which has the media banging on their doors demanding answers." Dena said with a sigh.

"Nobody's made a guess, though?"

"The rumor mill just talks of a killer who likes to use electricity to kill or that its Hard Drive doing this." She said with a grim smile.

Rick nodded but seemed to be still thinking. Dena saw this and was a bit dismayed that Rick had not joined the enforcers like she had. He'd made up his mind to be a hunter instead. If he had followed her, it was quite possible Jake Clawson and Rick would have become fast friends or bitter enemies because they were both extremely intelligent.

'Well you win some you lose some that's how life is.' She thought philosophically. Suddenly everything went quiet as the door at the back of the stage opened and the Elders stepped out.

"That was fast." Zachary said as each Elder took their seats.

"About ten minutes. Watch yourself, Dena. Oliver's going to be royally pissed off at you." Rick said in concern.

"I always do." Dena said as Oliver shot her a look that said he was disgusted with her. Dena snorted, like she cared.

Once the Elders were all seated, it was Elder Oliver who stood up with a bland look on his face but his eyes spoke volumes about how he truly felt.

"It has been decided that the search for the rogue will continue. We expect an update on the hunt and a resolution in three weeks of the whole matter." Oliver said flatly.

"This concludes the special meeting for tonight. Thank you for your attendance. You may all leave." Elder Serena said in dismissal, standing up to leave herself.

Dena nodded to herself in satisfaction. 'Now they could do their job without everyone here breathing down their necks. Of course, I still have to deal with the Mayor and Deputy Mayor...oh well.' She said fatalistically. 'Now if only Zachary and Rick can find that rogue...' That thought led her mind to drift to the SWAT Kats.

She wondered if T-Bone could really be trusted to keep her secret...both her true sex and her species. Not only from his partner but other Kats as well. But many weeks had passed and she had heard nothing that would lead her to believe her secret was blown.

That alone assured her that her belief that he was an honest and trustworthy Kat wasn't misplaced. She had been concerned that he might let something out because of their nasty history but his steadfast adherence to a promise showed his true character. He didn't let his personal feelings get in the way of his integrity.

His image flashed into her mind again. The handsome powerfully build tabby in his g-suit was quite a good catch especially with his strict code of honor, morals, loyalty, and being extremely brave. All qualities that made him an excellent male to father bright and intelligent kittens.

While she was lost in her thoughts of her mate, Zachary, Rick and Demon, who was now at their sides, noticed the odd dreamy look on her face.

"Hey, sis you okay?" Demon asked wondering what could cause his sister to have such a look.

"Wha…? Oh, it's nothing! I'm just tired!" Dena said quickly letting her face take a relaxed expression.

"You sure? You had this really giddy look on your face." Zachary said softly

"Really? Nothing you should worry about, I'm just relieved things are going our way for once." She said with a shrug then changed the subject. "Anyway, I'll be seeing you guys on Friday." Dena said casually.

"Why Friday?" Demon asked as the four made their way out of the club's secret room.

"Mr. Young is coming to Megakat City tomorrow. He'll be visiting Manx and Briggs to decide about some business or other. So I have the job of making sure security is tight because every time that Kat visits something always happens.

"Is that so? Well then I guess we better be prepared. What time do we have to get up anyways?" Demon asked nonchalantly. His mind was working furiously. If he could take out Mayor Manx and Deputy Mayor Briggs along with this Mr. Young it would through Megakat City's government and the Katizens into chaos which would force the enforcers to focus on fixing the mess allowing him time to gather followers. His demonstration would convince those that felt like him about Kats to join with him. Very soon he would have his own small army that could step in to take charge of the city's government.

"Young will be arriving at seven in the morning. So I need to be at city hall by eight clock." Dena said annoyed as they stepped out.

"Okay! Go get some sleep then, see you in the morning!" Demon said seeing how tired looking Dena was when a lamppost cast its light over them.

"I will, goodnight guys." Dena said waving good night to them.

"We really need to catch that rogue fast, Zachary. Dena's wearing herself out worrying about the city, the SWAT Kats and now this rogue." Rick said noticing how tired Dena was too.

"I know! I'm doing everything I can. I have hunters on alert and to bring in any Iriomkats that had a history of problems with Kats but so far I come up with nothing!" Zachary said upset he wasn't making better progress.

"Don't worry so much Zachary. We'll catch them soon and everything will go back to the way it was." Demon said not wanting Zachary o punish himself.

Demon hated having to put his sister and friends through this but this had to be done to insure a brighter future for their kind. No more of this 'we need to hide or we'll be enslaved again' nonsense. Now as long as his plans continued to move forward as well as they were, kat kind would soon be under their control.

"You're right, Demon. Thanks, hey go head and take the rest of the night off. Things are pretty slow tonight, Rick and I will take over things." Zachary said warmly.

"You sure? I don't mind working tonight." Demon said but Zachary just shook his head. "Alright. I'll see you tomorrow night. Later."

With that Demon headed off while Rick and Zachary watched before heading back inside the club. They needed to clean up and close.

Over at the Megakat City Military Salvage Yard, Jake and Chance were down in the hangar working on the Turbokat. Jake was working on the engines while Chance was doing some work on the cyclotrons. Suddenly he heard Chance yelp in pain then curse loudly, followed by the sound of a tool being tossed to the ground angrily.

"Jake, I'm taking five!" Chance said moments later as he passed by his partner.

Jake only shook his head before setting his tool down. He climbed down the ladder and followed Chance path to their kitchen.

"What's bothering you, buddy?" Jake asked. He noticed that Chance had been very distracted and not getting enough sleep ever since that day he had been trapped with Feral in that vault.

"Nothings bothering me!" Chance snapped in irritation as he opened the fridge almost violently then took out a milk.

"Yes, there is! You've been very distracted and tired lately. This is dangerous, Chance. If we're sent out on a call I need to be able to count on my partner and I can't if his mind is somewhere else. So cough it up! You've been really out of it since you were trapped with Feral." Jake demanded, concerned Feral might have done or said something that was upsetting his friend.

"Nothing happen! I just haven't been getting enough sleep." Chance said, trying to put Jake off.

"Losing some sleep will make any kat a little short-tempered, I know that. But your behavior isn't like some sleepless kat!" Jake insisted.

"What do you know?!" Chance snapped before taking long gulps of milk.

"Chance, I'm worried! Whatever happened it wasn't your fault!" Jake said standing his ground.

Chance stopped drinking and stared at Jake for a moment. His friend's mistaken belief that Feral had done something to him made him burst out laughing. If he told Jake what really happened in that vault, his friend wouldn't believe him. He was still having trouble believing it himself. But at this moment it tickled his funny bone about the skewed situation he was in. It really wasn't funny though but it felt good to release some of his tension in a harmless way. It took him a few moments to regain control of himself. When he did, he just shook his head and took another sip of his milk noting his friend's really worried expression.

"I'm fine, Jake. But you're right. Something has been bothering me and I just don't know how to deal with it." He finally admitted, quietly.

"Tell me, maybe I can help. You know you could always tell me." Jake said happy that they were finally getting to the problem.

"Well…the dreams I've been having..." Chance paused as he tried to organize his thoughts.

"Dreams? That's it?" Jake asked as if he couldn't believe his ears.

"Yeah, what did you think it was about?" Chance asked looking at him.

Jake face flushed red then gave a cough, " N-nothing. So the dreams…what are they about?"

"They are about a she-kat." Chance sighed.

"Callie again? Chance we…."

"It isn't Callie! If it was about her, I could deal with it!" Chance said cutting off Jake

"Whoa, okay I get it! Now your dreams about a she-kat that isn't Callie. So?" Jake asked, getting frustrated by Chance's short and uninformative answers.

"In my dreams me and this she-kat always end up mating with each other. At first I didn't mind but now the dreams have become so intense..." Chance stopped unsure if he should say anymore.

"Is she real?" Jake asked in disbelief

"You make it sound as if you don't believe a word I'm saying." Chance said getting annoyed by Jake's attitude.

"Well dreams are nothing more then images and wishful thoughts that the mind moves around into patterns that allow one to make decisions..." Jake started to say before Chance cut him off abruptly.

"She real, Jake."

"Alright. Tell me more about these dreams." Jake coaxed. Chance sighed but started at the beginning with the first dream then ended with the one last night.

"Sorry buddy. The only thing I can tell you is that you either really want her or you just want to have a fling with her badly." Jake said rubbing the back of his neck.

"She and I hate each other. There is no way I could like her." Chance said quickly not wanting to think of it as a possibility.

"Then it has to be a fling."

"You sure?"

"I can't answer that, Chance. Only you can." Jake said now understanding what was bothering his friend.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe all I want is a simple fling and nothing more. Thanks, buddy." Chance said feeling somewhat relived but still not happy with the answer for some reason.

"Sure thing. Now can we head back to the hanger?"

"Yeah, let's go."

As the two headed back down to the hangar, Chance began to think of ways to meet Feral. It was dangerous for them to meet in the first place. Not that she couldn't take care of herself if she had too. It wasn't her enforcer training either. In that book he'd read on Iriomkats, she wouldn't even break a sweat taking him down despite how skilled and powerful he was in his own right. Even without their special abilities, they were very strong creatures.

'Crud all those times Jake and I teased her, she could have done some serious damage to us if she had really wanted to.' Chance thought in amazement. Fortunately for them, Feral was hiding who she was and had very good control of herself.

Still he really needed to see her privately. Some place where no one would see them. He needed to see if a fling was all he needed to get her out of his system. His mind slipped away again, trying to come up with plans of how to accomplish this. Thinking of her again made him want her badly, her sultry voice crying out her pleasure as he kissed, licked, and nuzzled her, feeling her under him as he took her.

His attention having wavered once more from his task caused him to injure himself again. He cursed his lack of concentration as he rubbed the pain out of his paw.

Hearing Chance cry out again made Jake lean out a little. He saw the sandy colored tabby nursing his wound. Jake shook his head. He didn't understand it. Chance had been with countless she-kats but this one, whoever she was, had him in a tailspin. Callie never affected him this badly and never to the point where he couldn't work or sleep.

Jake was truly amazed that some she-kat had his partner so wrapped up. Chance had mentioned he had seen her recently outside a club, dressed in a jean coat with the last two buttons undone with a red shirt that had white claws on the front and wearing low hip jeans topped off with black tennis shoes.

When Jake asked why he didn't see her then, Chance had said she had been greeted by a chocolate colored tom very warmly and she had returned the affection so he didn't want to intrude. When Jake tactfully tried to point out the tom might be a boyfriend or mate, Chance just shook his head, saying that it wasn't and he seemed to know that definitely. Jake still had reservations about that but wisely kept his mouth shut.

Sighing deeply, Jake wondered if this she-kat knew just how much she was affecting Chance. 'Whoever she is, she must have one heck of a personality.' Jake thought as he got back to working on the Turbokat.


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

In the early morning hours, Commander Ulysses (Dena) Feral was checking and rechecking the security around Megakat City Hall. She had an intense need to make sure everything was as tight as it could be. She didn't know if Mr. Young brought his own brand of bad luck with him, but every time he visited something unfortunate happened. This time she wouldn't be caught broadsided and be summoned too late to head off another disaster. This time she would be ready for anything.

Her enforcers were tense and on edge, not because of the extra security measures, they were used to that in this city, but for their Commander's rather more prickly behavior of late. She'd been short-tempered and was quicker to find fault and rip one's head off more readily. So everyone did their best not to get on her bad side by being hyper alert and to react quickly to anything that might happen.

Satisfied everything was as secure as she could make it she went up to the Mayor's Office. She nodded at Ms. Briggs in her office then stepped into the Mayor's to wait. Some twenty minutes later, the Mayor and Mr. Young with his associates were heard coming down the hall. They paid no attention to Feral as they stepped into the office still talking. Ms. Briggs joined her and they listened with some boredom to the Mayor trying to sell Mr. Young on the benefits of once more buying the ill-fated Megakat Tower building.

Feral sighed as she kept her eyes and ears peeled for trouble. More than an hour later and things were still going well, no sign of trouble. She allowed herself to relax a bit and let her mind drift. She hadn't missed how nervous her enforcers were around her of late. She only had herself to blame for that.

Her fouler than normal mood could be laid at the feet of a certain tom Kat. She hadn't been able to get a decent night's sleep due to the graphic erotic dreams of them both. To try and counter that, she worked longer hours till she was too exhausted to dream then she would get some measure of rest. However, that didn't stop the daydreaming that was occurring more and more, disrupting her ability to focus on her work.

This, of course, made her even more short tempered. She was snarling at Steele almost constantly and the poor tom was bewildered, wondering what he'd done to incur this extra nasty attention from his commanding officer.

And, as if that wasn't bad enough, her heat cycle was now only a couple weeks away. When it finally hit, her need for her mate would be all consuming. She needed to speak with T-Bone before that happened. Dena knew he was experiencing all the same problems she was but without the understanding of why it was occurring. But, to be truthful, she hadn't really been making that much effort to try and contact him.

No matter how sexually frustrated she was feeling, she still did not want to be mated right now and definitely not to a vigilante. She knew she was being stupid about this because her body plainly made it obvious that he was her mate...no mistake about that. The thought made her scowl...of all the times to find her mate, this was the worst.

Ms. Briggs raised an eyebrow at the sight of the scowl on Feral's face. Her eyes questioned the Commander nonverbally. Dena quickly got her thoughts back on business and gave Briggs a shrug and a nod toward the still nattering Mayor.

Ms. Briggs thought the Commander was being annoyed by the Mayor's oily attempts at enticing Mr. Young to buy so she gave Dena a wane smile of understanding.

Dena sighed inwardly, thankful Callie had misunderstood the scowl and scolded herself for allowing her attention to wander. It was hard though, to stay alert through two more hours of droning conversation that didn't include her. So it was with great relief when she watched the parties finally come to an agreement, papers were signed, and paws shaken.

Dena didn't hesitate to rise from the seat she'd taken at the end of the conference table and preparing to leave.

"Just a minute, Commander." Briggs said stopping the Chief Enforcer from leaving while Mayor Manx and Mr. Young and his associates walked out of the office together.

"What is it, Ms. Briggs?" Dena asked, anxious to leave.

"I'm still troubled by what may have happened between you and T-Bone in that vault. Both of you have been acting a little odd since it happened. I demand an answer." Briggs said bluntly. It was obvious she wasn't going to let go of this subject.

Dena's jawed tightened. This was not good. She needed to get the Deputy Mayor off her back. "Nothing happen between myself and that arrogant SWAT Kat, Ms. Briggs. We didn't even get into an argument except about his clumsiness that got us trapped in the first place. We even put the rest of the fallen items up on the shelves so that we wouldn't fight. There is nothing more to say about it." She said firmly.

Callie's eyes narrowed. By her expression, she didn't believe Dena. "I beg to differ, Commander Feral. I tried to get T-Bone to tell me what happened but he, uncharacteristically, wouldn't. That just made me even more suspicious. So I can only assume something more had happened and I want to know what it was." She persisted.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Briggs, I have nothing further to say on the matter. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work waiting for me. Good day." Dena turned and strode out of the office without a backward glance. She could feel Briggs fuming behind her.

Feral stepped out of the office and briskly headed for the elevator not noticing a shadow hiding just around the corner. The shadow watched Dena get on the elevator. Once the doors closed, the shadow quickly made its way to the Mayor's Office. The stranger had managed to get by all the security by the simple expediency of waylaying an enforcer and stealing his uniform then stowing the unfortunate officer into a janitor's closet, tied up and gagged.

He didn't bother to knock when he opened the Mayor's door and walked in. Ms. Briggs was still there taking care of the paperwork the Mayor had left on his desk. She looked up in surprise, wondering why Feral had sent an enforcer to her.

"Can I help you?" Callie asked with a frown.

"Yes, you can. You see, I need you to die." The fake enforcer said, smiling grimly behind the enforcer protective mask as he raised a paw that sparked with energy that raised the fur on her neck.

Callie screamed as she dodged the sudden blast of lightning that hurtled her way and slammed into the wall behind her setting off sparks and plaster that showered her as she scrambled for her office. The stranger fired another ball of energy at her but Briggs was too used to being a target and he missed her, the door frame sprayed bits of wood after her retreating form.

She managed to make it to her own office, snatched her purse, and ducked under her desk. She frantically searched for the special signal device and was relieved when her paw finally located it and pushed the button.

She heard the stranger approaching and decided staying here was not a good idea. Keeping low, she tried to lunge for the door leading to the hallway. She only made it to the threshold when his third blast caught her. He hadn't used a killing blow. His energy blast was only enough to shock her nervous system into freezing.

He walked calmly toward her limp form. He picked her up and carried her back inside and closed the door to the hall. Laying her on the floor before her desk, he knelt down and used his fingers on her jaw to turn her face toward him then moved his paw to her shoulder.

"Now, before I kill you. You're going to answer a few questions for me. Understand?" He asked, sending a low energy shock through her to show he meant business.

Briggs jolted and swallowed a scream. "Yes!" She blurted quickly so as not to be shocked again.

"Good! Now tell me…who are the SWAT Kats?" He demanded coldly.

"I don't know!"

"Don't lie to me! I know for a fact you have a very personal relationship with them!" He hissed sending another jolt.

"Ahhh! I…I…I'm not lying! I don't know who they are!" Briggs answered frantically.

"Alright, if that's true then you must have some way you are able to contact them, yes?" He asked bluntly.

"N-N-No!" Callie lied then dared to ask, "Why are you after the SWAT Kats?"

"Because you worthless she-Kat, they may be the same species as I and can aid me or they are your species and will be a major pain in the tail for me just as they already are for my twin." He said with disgust as he got to his feet.

'He has a twin? And what species is he?' Briggs thought in confusion, then asked, "Before you kill me. C-Could you tell me what you are?" She wished the SWAT Kats would hurry up and she wished she could see this Kat's face but all that was visible was a pair of cold golden eyes.

"Why not? You should know that my kind will rule over yours even if you won't be around to witness it. I'm an Irom…"

He never finished what he was about to say because a blow caused by something hard slapped his shoulder and sent him flying through the connecting doorway to the Mayor's office.

Standing in Callie's doorway stood the SWAT Kats, who had cautiously opened the door when they had heard his voice, without Demon noticing. Razor's glovatrixs was extended showing it had been he who had fired the cement shots at the big Kat.

"Ms. Briggs!" They cried out, stepping quickly into the room to her side.

"SWAT Kats," Briggs said, very relieved to see them.

"Hold on, Ms. Briggs. We'll get you out of here!" Razor said as he knelt down to pick her up.

"You're not going anywhere!" Came the cold voice of the stranger.

Razor and T-Bone jerked their heads toward the connecting doorway and saw the fake enforcer glowering at them as he brushed the wet cement off his clothes. Before they could react, they froze when the stranger extended his paw and energy began to glow from the end of his fingers.

Razor's eyes widened in surprise behind his mask while T-Bone stood stunned as his mind realized just what this creature was. The energy made their fur stand up.

"At least I know which species you are. Such a shame really, you would have been of great use to me if you'd been the right species." The stranger said coldly preparing to fire.

'Species? What the heck is he?' Razor thought in confusion. Callie was silent and listening. Her limbs still wouldn't work for her yet.

T-Bone, though, knew exactly what this guy was when he blurted out, "You're an Iriomkat!"

Demon stared. "How is you know what I am? Who told you?" He asked frowning. His thunder had been taken and he wanted to know who had let the secret out before he could.

T-Bone ignored the question. He wouldn't answer it anyway. "This doesn't make sense. Your kind is in hiding for a reason. Why are you exposing them? For that matter, why are you attacking us? " He demanded in confusion. He was certain Dena wasn't aware of this.

Demon snarled at the Kat. "How can a lower life form such as you know so much about us? Someone has already told you about Iriomkats? Who was it?" He asked again, getting furious.

T-Bone swallowed, this guy was dangerous. He needed to talk to Dena quickly but first they needed to get out of this. Before he could come up with anything, the stranger fired a bolt of energy straight at T-Bone.

Razor screamed in anger and fear but he was still holding Callie and couldn't do anything but watch in horror as the energy burst struck his friend.

T-Bone had thrown up his paw with the glovatrixs but he wasn't in time to fire anything before the blast would hit him. A large form suddenly stepped in front of him and took the blast on it's powerful chest. Before T-Bone could register that it was Feral standing there. The blast hit.

T-Bone screamed as a hot burning pain surged through him as if the blast had struck him instead of Feral. A scream of 'no' was heard over the chaos. Demon was horrified he had hit his sister and stood frozen.

Razor turned and set Callie down in the hall against the wall before turning back to deal with the stranger and his screaming partner. Everything was happening so fast.

The pain faded as his arms instinctively wrapped around Dena's body. The shock of her brother's energy blast caused Dena to lose her illusion and it was a female body that he now held. Dena was panting and blood was running from a cut near her mouth as she absorbed the energy as well as managed the pain from her mate. She lost consciousness from the effort.

Demon hissed angrily. His plan had been ruined by his sister's interference. The sound of sirens rent the air which told him he needed to leave now. He gave her a hurt and sorrowful look before he turned into the Mayor's office with Razor hot on his heels.

"Razor, no!" T-Bone shouted after his partner.

Razor halted in confusion. "We've got to catch him. We can't just let him get away!" He objected.

"No Razor, he's far too dangerous. Let him go! We can't handle him, he's too powerful. You heard what I called him. His own species are the one who must get him." T-Bone said firmly. He was still holding Dena in his arms as she recovered, her legs shaking, her head resting on his shoulder.

Puzzled and angry, Razor came back to T-Bone's side and stared at Dena. "Iriomkats are supposed to be extinct so I don't understand how you know so much about them T-Bone, just as I don't understand how Feral could be a she-kat!" He said in angry confusion.

"Now isn't the time, Razor. You need to get Callie to medical help. I'll explain later." T-Bone said tightly.

"But what about her? Don't she need medical help as well?" He asked.

"No, she'll be fine, but no one can know about her, Razor. You can't say anything. Just go and take care of Callie." T-Bone ordered.

Scowling angrily, Razor went back out to the hallway and picked Callie up into his arms. He carried her off into the arriving elevator with two enforcers in it. He told them the danger was over and that the Deputy Mayor needed medical help. One of them punched the lobby button for him and the other called on his radio to have a medical team and ambulance ready. As the elevator went down, Razor stared at the door silently going over what T-Bone had said and what he'd witnessed.

"Razor?" Callie's weak voice asked.

Razor looked down at her. "It's okay Ms. Briggs, they'll fix you right up." He said reassuringly.

"I want to know what happened after you left me in the hall. Where did that strange Kat go?" She demanded not allowing him to avoid her gaze.

He sighed inwardly. "He got away! Don't worry T-Bone and I will get him." The two enforcers growled at that but Razor ignored them.

"But why did he want to kill us?" She asked frowning.

"I really don't know. He wasn't saying much!" Razor said evading anything more.

Callie was still frowning when the medics took her from his arms. She just knew he wasn't telling her everything that had happened.

Razor quickly turned back and ran to the elevators. He punched the button for the top floor. He was seething. That Kat...no he said he was an Iriomkat...was capable of firing energy from his fingers. He was sort of like Hard Drive except he wasn't wearing anything that could explain how he did what he did except for it being his own body producing it. Now that was a scary thought. That would explain why T-Bone didn't want him to just go running after the guy. He didn't have anything that could fight that kind of thing. He would have to study this more. But this business with Feral was even more shocking. 'What the heck was that about?' Razor thought.

Once Razor had disappeared into the elevator, T-Bone gathered Dena in his arms and made for the clock tower. Once to the top, he opened the door and stepped into the small room then closed the door behind him. It was suddenly dark, he searched until he found the light switch and turned it on.

Now that he could see, he gently laid her down so that he could check her. He sat down and laid her in his lap. The pain he felt had to mean Dena was injured on her chest. Her uniform had a perfect hole that showed a burn mark dead center between her breasts. He carefully touched it and felt pain immediately at the same time Dena hissed.

'What the heck?' He thought in dazed shock. 'It's almost the same way as those dreams I've been having. What's going on?' He looked down at her in confusion and was shocked to see her injuries were healing before his eyes.

Suddenly, she moved and groaned. He lifted her up into his arms and felt her breath against his neck it sent shivers of pleasure racing through his body. He huffed in disgust with himself for being that turned on when she was just recovering.

Dena shifted her body and unknowingly brushed her leg across his swollen groin making him gasp. 'Damn if she doesn't stop doing that, I'll end up taking her right here, right now' He thought trying desperately to think of something else besides the way she made him feel. Dena groaned again and her eyes fluttered.

"Huh…what…?" Dena asked groggily trying to see where she was. Her nose was buried in a familiar chest, the scent unforgettable.

"How do you feel?" A familiar gravely voice asked.

Dena yelped loudly making his ears hurt. She tried to jerk out of his arms, much to his surprise. He automatically tightened his hold. He had no intention of her getting away until he got some answers.

"Whoa, calm down!" He said trying to soothe her while making it clear he wasn't letting go.

"Let go!" Dena said placing her paws on his shoulders to try and push him away.

"Not till I have some answers!"

"About what?" She snapped.

"About what happen back there! That guy he was an Iriomkat wasn't he? So why was he attacking Ms. Briggs?" T-Bone asked bluntly.

Dena sighed in frustration, "Yes, he is an Iriomkat but he's a rogue. For the past several weeks, I and our hunters have been trying to find him but with no luck. As to why he attacked Ms. Briggs, I really don't know."

T-Bone shook his head, " But I read that Iriomkats are a peaceful race. Why is this one so bent on revealing you and killing?"

"We are a peaceful race but just as there are good kats and bad, the same can be said about us."

"I see. Then how are we going to capture him?"

"We?" Dena said, looking at him in askance. No way was he getting involved.

"Fine, the Enforcers." He amended.

"They won't."

"What? Why not?!" T-Bone asked in shocked surprise.

"Because we can't risk being found out." Dena said tartly. She could feel his anger through their growing bond.

"So just you and these...hunters are going to stop him from killing Kats? This is a big city. How are you going to do that for Crud Sake!" He said angrily.

"We are very good at what we do. We can move faster than you and are used to stealth more than you are. And we have been trying to catch him, at least we finally know what sex we're chasing. When he's caught our Elders will punish him." She said bitingly.

"Elders?" T-Bone asked, frowning.

"The Elders are the oldest most wise of my kind. They are responsible for ensuring our safety as well as monitoring births, mating, and deaths. They hand out punishment should an Iriomkat break the law." She explained.

"Wow, you guys have a complete hidden society...a government, enforcer types..." T-Bone said in amazement.

"We've had centuries to develop one that suits us well." Dena said proudly.

"Yeah, I guess. I still think you need help. It is a big city and you did say you didn't even know what sex he was so that just tells me he's playing with you. He's obviously found a way to hide that you haven't been able to uncover." He said seriously.

She felt uncomfortable at that very accurate assessment. He was right, the rogue had been successful at eluding them. She shifted in his lap trying to think of a way to respond. Her movement caused her to once again brush against his groin.

The attraction that had him so hard he was uncomfortable had been forgotten during the conversation. But now it was brought to mind full force causing him to groan again. He tried to do deep breathing to calm his body but that only brought Dena's intoxicating scent into his nose.

He couldn't resist burying his nose in her neck fur and inhaling deeply. Dena shivered and felt a blush of heat spread over her. T-Bone's own scent increased and she was overwhelmed with the odor of spicy musk mixed with jet fuel and hot metal.

Unable to stop herself, she turned the rest of the way around, spreading her legs to wrap around his waist. Her sudden movement and the strong increase in her scent made T-Bone growl with intense arousal. He hissed as she rubbed her pant covered sex against his G-suit covered one.

He thrust his hips up against that heat and rowled excitedly. She mewed hotly, throwing her head back. He dipped his head and nibbled her neck causing her to shudder and rub harder against him.

Everything around them was forgotten as the pulse of desire throbbed between them. T-Bone took one of his arms from around Dena and used it to pull her closer to him for an intense kiss. At that moment nothing else mattered but the fire growing between them.

T-Bone tongue came out tracing her lips, demanding entry. Dena opened her mouth slightly but it was enough to allow him to slip his tongue in and taste every inch of her mouth before she turned the tables and pushed her own tongue into his mouth and explored. They groaned in unison as the heat increased.

Meanwhile, their urgent movements against each other was making them frantic. Frottage had never really worked for T-Bone before but this time he was on fire and knew he was soon going to lose it. The constant rubbing against each other sent jolts of pleasure too intense for them to last must longer. Dena let out a crying mew clenching T-Bone to her and he was doing the same, letting out a low rumbling growl.

Panting heavily with a light sweat covering them, the pleasure built to an intense crescendo. Dena tossed her head back screaming her climax as T-Bone howled his own.

They clung together as their breath and hearts slowed to normal. They felt sated but weirdly enough it wasn't enough. They felt a need still echoing within them that hadn't been met. Suddenly, Dena pulled violently away from T-Bone's arms and scrambled to her feet. T-Bone continued to sit there in stunned surprise.

"Dena, what's wro…" T-Bone started to say until he noticed where Dena was looking.

Razor stood there in the open door of the clock tower staring at them in stunned disbelief. He looked from his partner to the one he knew was supposed to be Commander Feral and back again all without saying a word.

Razor had returned to the Mayor's office only to find his partner gone. He knew T-Bone wouldn't have left without him so he went to the clock tower which led out to the landing pad where the Turbokat was parked.

When he'd opened the door he was shocked to see T-Bone and Feral in an intimate clench, the scent of sex heavy in the air. 'What the heck was going on?' He thought in dazed confusion.

"Just how long have you known Feral was female? And what's with this business between you two?" Razor asked, tired of being out of the loop with his friend.

T-Bone looked at Dena who looked unsure about what to do at this moment. It was really too late to cover up anything. Razor was far too intelligent. So it was probably best to be up front now.

"Since the incident in the vault." T-Bone said quietly still waiting to see what Dena would say.

"Razor, don't blame T-Bone for keeping quiet. I told him he had to keep secret what he'd learned that day even from you. It's the law among my kind. Our secret must be kept for our race's survival." She said firmly, trying to be professional despite her embarrassment at being caught in such an intimate moment.

"Okaaay!" He said slowly. "That means you're a different race, so what might that be and what else am I not being told?" He asked flatly.

Hearing the tension and anger in Razor's voice, T-Bone felt compelled to jump up and stand between Dena and his partner. He was startled to feel such an intense need to protect her.

"Cool your jets, Razor! I'm sorry I couldn't tell you about her but I did promise and you know how I feel about my word." He said soothingly.

"I'm having trouble believing Iriomkats do exist. Are you one too?" Razor asked, surprised by T-Bone's protective behavior and wondering what it meant.

"Yes and I can prove it..." Dena said as she removed her coat, tie, then pulled her shirt out with her T-shirt and showed her back to Razor.

Razor stared at the distinctive markings that he thought could only be found in history books.

"Wow! That's amazing. But I'm not certain why you guys are still in hiding. Is it really that dangerous for you to be known?" Razor asked, relaxing as he realized a powerful race still existed among Katkind. It was a lot to take in.

"It a very long story and there's really no time to do it now. If you'll come to the Club Imrie tonight, I'll try to make you understand." Dena said as she restored her clothes.

"Club Imrie? I've heard of that place but have never gone in." T-Bone said.

"Well, when you come it will be closed but I'll get you in anyway. Say nothing to no one. It's a problem that you know in the first place but you're involved now. The Elders will want to see you anyway." Dena said, wishing this hadn't happened.

"Can we trust her, T-Bone?" Razor asked still a bit lost on all this.

"I should be asking you that, don't you think!" She said tartly.

"Yes, we can because she trusts me, don't you?" T-Bone asked, not doubting her answer.

Dena was surprised by this but knew it was true. "Yes, I trust you." She said without any doubt in her voice.

"Good, we'll be there." T-Bone said then added, "Are you healed enough to cast your illusion spell?"

"Illusion spell?" Razor asked but gasped as he watched Dena vanish and the familiar dark tom reappear, voice and all.

"This is how we hide ourselves from your kind, Razor." Feral said distantly now moving passed them for the door. "See you two at seven o'clock." With that she went through the door and closed it behind her.

Razor shook his head in continued amazement. "Wow! That's some trick! So do you know why they hide, T-Bone?" He asked curiously as they went out the other door for their Turbokat.

"What I've read is Katkind treated her race cruelly, making them slaves for many centuries until they were able to use magic to escape and hide themselves. They've hidden themselves ever since." T-Bone told his friend.

"I guess I better do some research then. I don't want to put my foot in my mouth tonight." Razor said seriously as they jumped aboard the jet.

When T-Bone had the jet airborne, he said, "Thanks for being so understanding, Razor. I really am sorry I couldn't tell you."

"Yeah, I understand buddy. You gave your word." Razor said easily.

Once home, T-Bone opened the canopy and they jumped down and walked quietly to their lockers to change. When they were through, Jake went to a phone and called someone he knew to find out how Callie was and was relieved to find out she'd be alright.

They went up to their apartment and since they didn't have anymore work and it was getting late, they locked the garage and ordered dinner. While they were eating, Jake wanted some more information.

"Okay, tell me exactly what happened in the that vault and don't leave anything out."

It took about thirty minutes for Chance to tell Jake what went on that momentous day. He also told him about the feelings he'd experienced being near her that first time.

"Then what I saw back there? What was that?" Jake asked.

"You remember those dreams I told you about? Feral was the she-kat."

"Whoah, really!? Man, Chance I'm totally blown away that you've got the hots for Feral of all people. It just boggles my mind. Uhmm...you're not afraid she might hurt you? They are supposed to be incredibly powerful creatures...especially if that male is any indication of what they can do." He asked cautiously. He didn't want his friend hurt by accident.

"She'd never hurt me, Jake. She saved me if you remember." Chance said dryly.

"Oh yeah that's right." Jake said remembering now. "So how are we going to catch this rogue? No way I want to let that guy wander free. He's deadly and I don't think they are going to be able to catch him before he kills again."

"Yeah, I know. I feel the same way but we have to see what they have to say first. We don't want to step on their toes. They have their own laws." Chance said thoughtfully.

"Okay, but I'll just come up with something that might help catch that guy." Jake said.

"Good idea." Chance agreed. If anyone could come up with a weapon that could even the odds it would be Jake. He was just glad his buddy was so understanding.

While the SWAT Kats were resting and waiting for their meeting that evening. Dena was dealing with the press and Mayor Manx who was demanding answers as to what had happened to his office and Ms. Briggs.

She answered the best she could while still not revealing anything about the rogue. Though no one was really happy with her answers they finally let her go. Afterwards, she ordered the clean up of the area and placed guards around Briggs hospital room in case the rogue tried to attack her again.

Finally, as the sun was going down, she was able to go home. She was grateful to have enough time to change and shower. She had been worried the whole time that someone might remark on her sex laden scent but no one did. Good thing no one knew T-Bone's scent or that would have been really hard to explain.

Dena took a shower then changed her underwear, put on a light cotton shirt and blue jeans with tennis shoes. As much as she would have liked to rest, she needed to call Zachary and have him send the hunters to Megakat City Hall and to call a meeting of the Elders.

Telling him she was bringing the SWAT Kats had caused a shocked silence over the phone but she told him she would explain at the meeting. The elders would not be happy knowing that two kats knew that Iriomkats were alive and well. There would be a lot of questions to answer but hopefully everything would turn out alright.

Finished with her phone call, Dena headed out. She needed to arrive at the club before the SWAT Kats did. The drive to the club had her feeling anxious, her main thought was about keeping her selection of a mate secret from the Elders. Pushing that thought aside Dena calmed herself down and put on a blank face. She knew she needed to keep herself under tight control or risk being found out.

At the club, Dena parked her hummer, set it's security then walked to the club entrance. She saw that Zachary had put the closed sign up but knew the door was open for her. She only had to wait thirty minutes before the familiar sight and sound of a pair of cyclotrons greeted her. The SWAT Kats had arrived and were parking their special bikes in an alley behind the club. She waited for them to walk around the building and up to her side.

She noted that Razor was a bit tense. He nodded at her. T-Bone on the other paw, was fairly relaxed about the whole thing. She nodded at them both and preceded them into the club. They were surprised when she walked through the club and went to the back. She opened the door to a storage closet and went to the back wall and halted. She touched something they couldn't see and suddenly a hidden door opened. A stairwell leading down was revealed. She started down.

"Are you coming?" Dena asked when she realized they weren't directly behind her. They looked at each other for a moment.

"We're coming." Razor said, finally, going down the stairs followed by T-Bone who shut the door behind him.

At the bottom of the stairs there was yet another door with a set of guards who tensed at the presence of Kats.

"I've already gotten clearance for them." She said firmly. The guards looked uneasy but finally opened the door to allow them entry.

As they entered the large room, T-Bone and Razor were stunned to see the size of the space. Razor quickly noted the small medical center to one side, the child care area in another, and where Dena was leading them a large meeting area with chairs and tables. Set up on a large stage, a long heavy and ornate table was placed with five comfortable chairs. Sitting at each were five unique creatures. The Iriomkat Elders stared at the visitors with closed expressions, except for one.

"Dena! What is the meaning of this?! Why have you brought kats here?! Have you gone mad?!" Oliver asked infuriated slamming his fists on the table before him.

T-Bone and Razor tensed at Oliver's tone, a small amount of energy could be seen sparking across his fur. They waited to see how Dena would react. They had only seen her in her persona as the Commander.

They were surprised when she didn't react to the Elder's words. Normally, she would lose her temper and snap back but not here. She remained calm and collected while Oliver continued rant. Finally, Oliver finished and Serena quickly spoke up before he could get his second wind.

"Please explain to us why have you brought the SWAT Kats here, Dena." Serena said in a cool controlled voice but they could hear the anger behind it.

Razor sucked in a breath of surprise. Serena was beautiful and her voice had caught him in some fashion he couldn't explain. He watched her closely, drawn in by her beautiful eyes. He was so captivated that he nearly missed what Dena did next.

Dena's posture changed. Her ears dropped and her tail wrapped around her feet in discomfort. Her body showed her sorrow for upsetting Serena. Despite this, Dena spoke calmly.

"Earlier today, Ms. Briggs was attacked by the rogue who managed to steal the uniform and protective visor of one of my enforcers. The rogue nearly killed the Deputy Mayor but the SWAT Kats arrived in time to stop him but they didn't have the weapons to put him out of action and the rogue fired on T-Bone. I was forced to leap in front of him to prevent him from being harmed. In the process, I lost my hold over my illusion. They, of course, saw my true form. The rogue managed to escape during the confusion. Ms. Briggs had been electro paralyzed and was taken to the hospital. Though she suffered some minor trauma from the incident, she will recover..." She informed them but was cut off before she could finish.

"That is not what we asked!" Oliver snapped savagely, but Roy hissed at him.

"Enough Oliver! You haven't even let Dena finish." Roy said, thoroughly annoyed by Oliver's actions. Oliver mumbled under his breath while Roy nodded at Dena to continue.

"As for the SWAT Kats, T-Bone has known of my true gender and species for weeks now due to the Pastmaster locking us up together in the museum vault where my illusion spell was dispelled. Razor has only learned of this some hours ago." Dena said, quietly composed.

"If so then we must cast the spell of forgetfulness in order for us to remain hidden as well as on Ms. Briggs." Jade said firmly

"That's not necessary, T-Bone had given his word weeks ago and has not broken it not even to his partner. I have no doubt that Razor has the same high sense of honor and would keep his word not to reveal us." Dena said, pleadingly.

T-Bone and Razor were taken aback by Dena's plea. Feral who had never, since they had known her, begged anyone for leaniacy or a favor. It never seemed her nature to do that. Razor had been afraid that she would turn them over to her Elders for some kind of punishment which was why he was so nervous about coming here. After reading up on them, he was even more leery of these truly dangerous creatures despite their supposed peaceful nature. Dena's behavior was totally unexpected.

"You know very well we can't do that. The only exception to the rule would be that either Razor or T-Bone was your mate. Seeing as how they are not, we must cast the spell." Davis said not looking at the two of them.

"But…!" Dena tried to think of anything she could say to convince them short of telling them that T-Bone was her mate but couldn't come up with anything. If she admitted he was her mate, the SWAT Kats would be shocked and possibly refuse to believe her. T-Bone might even reject her despite the developing empathic link.

Razor surprised them by asking a question. "You say Kats and Iriomkats can be mates?" He asked in surprised shock.

"Yes, it is. We have a least four couples in this city." Serena said now looking at the smaller tom causing him to catch his breath.

"But how do you guys know who your mate is?" T-Bone asked curiously.

"We have a strong mating instinct. It tells us when we are in our mate's presence causing our bodies to react. When we touch for the first time there is a jolt of attraction that races through our bodies. This is when the empathic bond begins to form." Serena answered.

"How can a Kat tell if he or she is the mate of an Iriomkat?" Razor asked

"The Kat will feel the same as us. Though some Iriomkats will not readily admit that their mate is a Kat and will try to ignore the link. This of course can cause the sexual pressure to build up in them." Ray said answering Razor's question.

"Build up? What do you mean?" T-Bone asked not noticing how Dena was beginning to look panic-stricken.

"The pair begin to experience intense dreams about mating that gradually become very graphic and intense. This progresses to daytime desires to mate. It becomes unrelenting until they finally physically mate. They want each other and no one else." Serena explained staring at T-Bone closely then Dena, who was looking very uncomfortable, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.

T-Bone gaped at the Elder in growing shock and realization. 'This can't be!' T-Bone thought in a panic. He jerked his head around to look at Dena who now looked nervous. 'The dreams, the intense urges...now were explained...they were mates!?' He thought, disbelief trying to gain a foot hold but losing in the face of Dena's silent tension and nervous looks. Her obviously guilty look made T-Bone suddenly explode with anger.

"You knew?! You knew this whole time but you didn't bother to tell me? Why?" T-Bone roared in fury.

"I think our past nasty history has a lot to do with it and the fact that you're a vigilante and I'm the Chief Enforcer, things like that. Either of those are pretty good reasons that you wouldn't have been jumping for joy if I had told you!" She snapped, pretending an anger she didn't feel.

"You're right about that, I'm not! There's no way I would have chosen you to be my mate! Fling, yes, mate, no!"

Dena was shocked by that admission by T-Bone. The anger she was pretending suddenly changed to the real thing and without giving a hint of what she intended, she moved faster than a Kat and swung her open palm against his face in a loud slap, rocking T-Bone's head back.

T-Bone felt shock and dismay. The sharp pain in his face made him blink. 'What just happened?' He thought then looked at Dena's face that had tears streaming down it. Feelings of shame, guilt and astonishment at seeing her cry filled his mind.

"You are an arrogant asshole!" Dena hissed furiously, choking on her tears as she turned and ran out of the room. The room went silent for a long moment in shock.

"Well that when certainly went over well, didn't it?" Davis said trying for a little levity, earning him a disapproving looks from the others except for Oliver.

Sighing in frustration, Serena spoke up, "T-Bone and Razor, due to this new circumstance, the five of us must talk with you. Razor, since you are the friend and partner of Dena's mate it would be best if you were no longer kept in the dark. Do you agree?"

"Yes, ma'am." Razor said politely while wondering why he was feeling such strange feelings every time he looked at Serena.

"But what about Dena?" T-Bone asked feeling guilt and shame as he touched his cheek.

"Let her go for now, T-Bone. It's clear to everyone here that you and Dena must work out your differences with each other before a bonding can occur. A warning T-Bone." Serena said causing T-Bone to look at her more intently.

"In Dena's kitten hood, something terrible happened to her making it hard for her to let anyone near her much less her heart, understand?" Serena said feeling she needed to give T-Bone a paw in understanding his difficult mate.

"I think so." T-Bone said, wondering what trauma had occurred and how he would get Dena to tell him about it.


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

While the Elders were explaining the rules and some of the history of their culture to T-Bone and Razor, Dena had fled to the club above and was now standing at the bar, wiping tears from her eyes.

'I'm such an idiot!' She thought bitterly, feeling ashamed at herself for getting upset at T-Bone's ill-considered words. It had hurt more than she thought it should.

It was hard for her to admit that she truly wanted him as a mate but the timing was wrong, the worst being that they were on opposite sides of the law enforcement fence and the upheaval caused by the actions of the rogue. Also, if their enemies learned of it they would use that information against them. It was a very sobering thought and made her shiver.

But what was she going to do now? Now that T-Bone knew they were mates and was rightfully upset that she had withheld that information from him, he might want to reject her but the empathic link wouldn't allow them to forget each other. It seemed, however, that T-Bone would willingly put up with the distracting urges rather than accept her as his mate.

'It can't end this way! I need to talk to him. I just hope he can contain his anger enough for us to discuss this rationally.' She thought with a worried sigh.

"Dena, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Came a voice behind her. She froze and slowly looked up to see Zachary and Rick with identical looks of concern on their faces.

"Me? Crying? No, I just got something in my eye that's all." Dena said trying deny it.

"Please don't lie to me. I know when you're upset about something or when you've been crying." Zachary said firmly as he moved closer to comfort her but stopped short of touching her, remembering what had happened the last time.

"Please don't concern yourself, Zachary, I'm okay, truly." Dena said then cleared her throat, "Did you find anything at the scene?"

Zachary frowned at Dena not satisfied that something wasn't wrong but before he could object, Rick cut him off.

"Other than the fact it's a male and bold enough to attack the Deputy Mayor in broad daylight? Nothing." Rick said flatly, disappointment in his voice.

"What about Briggs? Surely the Elders will allow us to question her before they erase her memories?" Zachary asked Dena, hoping Briggs had noticed something useful about their rogue.

"I don't know. I'll have to ask the Elders but that will have to wait until they are through with the SWAT Kats." Dena said quietly.

"The SWAT Kats are here? Why?" Rick asked looking at Dena since Zachary hadn't told him anything about this.

"They showed up to rescue Briggs and got a good look at the rogue. They insisted on being involved so they are downstairs talking to the Elders this minute." She said, deliberately not informing them why they were allowed in the Iriomkats meeting room in the first place.

"Those kats always did pick the wrong time to get involved in things that doesn't concern them." Zachary snorted sarcastically

"Are they having their memories erased?" Rick asked, confused as to why the Elders would allow the vigilantes in their sanctuary at all. Something wasn't right. He thought Dena wasn't telling them everything.

Dena hesitated before saying reluctantly, knowing more questions were going to come of it. "No they are not."

"What? Why not?" Zachary blurted in shock.

Dena sighed. Even though she hadn't wanted to say anything about it, she really couldn't lie to her best friend. He was definitely not going to like what she said next.

Down below the club, Serena sighed deeply once more as she and the rest of the Elders finished educating the SWAT Kats on them, Oliver having refused to say anything. They also answered all their questions the best they could.

They ended the lesson with an admonishment to the pair that they could not say anything about their society to anyone. They also told them that they were forbidden to interfere with the hunt for the rogue. Their hunters and Dena would take care of that problem. They were dismissed.

But seeing the set expressions on the SWAT Kats faces even if she couldn't see their eyes told Serena they wouldn't pay heed to that anyway and would do what they thought best. She watched them leave. Sighing again, Serena signaled to the rest of the Elders that the meeting was over and they were dismissed.

The sounds of chairs moving and soft good nights were heard. Serena's eyes narrowed as they watched Oliver leave. 'That tom, what a pain in the tail he is! As stupid and idiotic as that Mayor of ours! The only reason he became an Elder in the first place was only because my mate refused the position!' Serena's mate would have made history among the Iriomkats as being the very first kat to become an Elder.

"Trouble, hon?" A soft gruff voice asked gently.

"Why ask something when you already know the answer, Razor?" Serena asked turning to look at her mate.

The Kat that came around to her side looked like Razor in his civilian identity but much older, his fur a much lighter red now. He chuckled as he handed his mate a can of milk.

"Razor, eh? Now that's a name I haven't heard in a very long while." Jake said taking the seat next to her.

Serena hummed, "Think everything will turn out alright?"

"I can't tell you that, hon. The rules…"

"I know the rules, Jake. I just wish I could say the heck with them and just tell Dena what's going to happen around here."

Jake shook his head, he understood his mate's desire to tell Dena so that she could spare the young Iriomkat more pain but the rules governing time travel were strict for a reason. The timeline could be irrevocably altered and that could never be allowed.

"I want to tell them as well, Serena. There are many things I want to say to T-Bone and myself at this time, but we can't." Jake said regretfully, as he leaned close to nuzzle her cheek.

"What's the point of all this? To know such things yet you can't say or do anything to prevent such pain from happening?" Serena asked, saddened and upset by the rules. She cared for Dena as if she were her own sister as Jake cared for Chance.

"We may be forbidden to interfere, hon, but the rules never said we couldn't nudge them in the right direction." He said with a smirk.

"You're a clever Kat you know that?" Serena said smiling at him.

"I know and so are you when you have your emotions under control." He said warmly.

"That's just the way I am, my love."

"I know, that's why I love you." Jake said, placing a paw behind Serena's head to draw her toward him for a kiss.

Back in the club above, Zachary and Rick were staring at Dena in shocked surprise after hearing the news she'd been obviously reluctant to tell them. Zachary was obviously hurt while Rick had his head cocked to one side with a thoughtful look on his face.

"You're serious?" Zachary demanded, finally able to find his voice.

"Dead serious. T-Bone is my mate. That's why the Elders aren't going to erase their memories." Dena said, sorry she had to hurt her best friend even though she had tried to make him realize she couldn't be with him the way he had wanted.

"Will they be helping us in this little case of yours?" Rick said breaking the growing tension between the friends.

"I don't have the answer to that question. I ended up running out of there after what...uh…never mind." Dena halted herself from blurting out more of her pain but her friend guessed anyway.

"He made you cry, didn't he?" Zachary asked, trying for a calm he didn't feel. A simmering anger was building up inside him.

"I don't want to discuss it! We..." She started to say when the pair under discussion appeared from where the hidden door was.

Dena felt her body tighten at the sight of the tiger tabby but forced herself to relax. T-Bone made it clear he wouldn't be talking to her anytime soon. Zachary on the other paw took a step forward blocking T-Bone's sight of Dena. He didn't want that wanna be hero around Dena if all he was going to do was hurt her. Rick eyes darted between the three of them already seeing problems. 'If it's not one drama it's another.' Rick thought with a mental sigh and rolling his eyes.

"You going to talk to her?" Razor asked his best friend as they stopped crossing the room when they spotted Dena and two unknown males.

T-Bone's eyes narrowed in unexpected anger and jealousy at the sight of the chocolate colored tom stepping in front of Dena and hiding her behind him. It was as if he was challenging T-Bone while protecting Dena. 'We'll see about that!' T-Bone growled mentally, as he walked over to the small group.

Zachary stiffened as he watched the powerful tom come toward them. As strong as the SWAT Kat was, he was no match for Zach if he intended to pick a fight. T-Bone halted more than an arms length away. He looked around Zachary to Dena.

"Dena, can I talk to you? …Alone?" He said calmly.

Zachary opened his mouth to hiss out a no but Dean brushed by him. Shocked, he hissed, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Going to talk with him." Dena said flatly, not looking at her friend as she moved to T-Bone's side.

T-Bone and Dena walked away to a quiet corner, far enough away to not be heard or interrupted. He could feel Dena's hurt and anger clearly.

'This must be what they meant about the empathic link.' T-Bone thought. He could see the pros and cons of this but knew Dena could use them too so he took great care in what he wanted to say even though he wasn't certain what that should be.

"Don't apologize! I know you believed what you said down there." Dena jumped in before he could say anything. "You don't care so why should I? Just stay away from me from now on!" She said coldly then turned and started to walk away.

"Why did you keep it a secret?" T-Bone called to her quietly. His words halted her. He stepped forward and grabbed her arm forcing her to face him again.

"You weren't planning to tell me or anyone else that we were mates, were you?" He demanded using the link to try and understand why she felt this way.

Dena slapped his paw away, " Why should you care? I'm nothing more then a fling to you."

T-Bone growled darkly, "Well excuse me! I just got the shock of my life...being mated to my worst enemy. How the heck did you expect me to react?" He demanded.

"I don't know. It was still very hurtful to hear you bluntly say what you did!" She said angrily.

"Okay, I concede that what I said was pretty nasty but I was angry that here I was feeling all these intense feelings for you and didn't know why and there you were knowing exactly what was going on and didn't bother to tell me. That was just wrong!" He said tightly.

"I had my reasons!" She snapped.

"What reasons?"

She shook her head violently but he held her firmly. "You were supposed to educate me on what was going on and tell your Elders you were mated to a Kat. You didn't do either!" He said flatly.

Her eyes narrowed into slits as she hissed out, " What gives you the right to spout my own society's laws at me?!"

"Because you are supposed to uphold those laws!" He hissed back.

"Oh, you're a fine one to tell me about upholding laws, vigilante." She hissed furiously. "You who only follow the rules when it suits you."

"That's an old argument that has no bearing on what you did!" T-Bone snapped impatiently.

"To me it's the same thing."

"You're avoiding telling me why you failed to tell anyone about us." T-Bone said, not letting her of the hook.

"I have my reasons! And there is no 'us' now!"

"Why?" T-Bone was getting frustrated. He could feel the same thing coming from her...but why? It just didn't make sense. God! Females, no matter what species, were so confusing. He getting no where fast.

"That's none of your business!" Dena said, even more upset. It felt like T-Bone really cared about what she felt. She was getting more confused by what she read from him.

"Why are you being so difficult?!" T-Bone finally said in utter frustration.

"Why the hell are you even acting like you care?!" Dena blurted furiously.

T-Bone opened his mouth to say something back but never got the chance because Zachary chose that moment to get between them.

"I think you're done talking now." Zachary said in a warning tone to the tiger tabby kat.

T-Bone growled ready to snap back at him when he noticed Dena clenching a piece of Zachary's jacket in her fist while leaning against his back seeking protection. He felt a pain of something he couldn't name at the sight of his mate seeking another for comfort as well as a possessive feeling of anger and jealousy against the interfering tom.

"Fine, we're done talking...for now." He snarled pushing past Zachary making sure he slammed his shoulder into the other tom in a show of strength.

He strode angrily toward the door. "Let's go, Razor." He called over his shoulder to his partner.

Zachary had grunted from the blow but didn't move as he could feel Dena pressed against his back clutching his jacket in her paw.

Across the room, Rick slipped up beside the other SWAT Kat and halted him before he could follow his partner. "Razor, right?" He asked mildly.

"Yeah, what do you want?" Razor asked feeling a little nervous around this grey furred Iriomkat.

"Easy, there. I'm not going to hurt you but could do me a favor?" Rick asked studying Razor's face.

"Eh, maybe." Razor said cautiously, taken aback by how blue the Iriomkat eyes were.

"Get T-Bone to calm down then tell him to go to the Tori Drop. It's one of Dena's favorite places to eat and unwind. It has good sushi."

"It won't do you any good if your brother's around to swirl up trouble." Razor said doubtfully.

He understood now that T-Bone and Dena couldn't resist the mating bond and it would harm their partnership if he didn't help solve this problem between them because T-Bone would continue to be distracted. Razor was still very leery of these creatures and the fact Dena was Commander Feral didn't make things any easier for him to accept.

"Leave my brother to me. He knew that one day Dena would meet her mate. Finding out T-Bone is her mate is just reality slapping him in the face." Rick said shaking his head sadly at his brother's actions.

"Okay. I guess I can do that. But if anything happens to T-Bone I'm blaming you." Razor said firmly, making it clear he didn't trust them enough yet.

"Fine by me." Rick said, understanding Razor's worry for his best friend.

Razor nodded then hurried to catch up with T-Bone who had already left. Rick sighed and turned to see what was going on with his brother and Dena. He shook his head again when he saw Zachary trying to comfort Dena only to have her shove him away.

'I really wish he had met his mate by now so that he'd stop mooning over Dena. She'll never be his and its ripping him apart.' He thought with a sad sigh. 'Better see if I can calm things down.'

At Megakat Hospital Callie Briggs laid in her hospital bed flipping through the television channels but wasn't focused on the screen, her mind was elsewhere. She kept replaying what had happened in her office earlier. She couldn't shake those cold, hateful, gold eyes that bored through her from behind the enforcer face guard the male was wearing.

She suspected Razor knew something but was closed mouth when he carried her down to the ambulance. It wasn't like him to be so secretive when her safety was in question. But somehow she knew he had been shaken by what he'd seen. She was shaken to by the power this strange male was capable of. He didn't wear anything like Hard Drive to explain how he could wield energy like that.

Her mind went back to those gold eyes. She seen those before but she was still feeling a little addled from the shock she'd received and bring the memory into focus. She stopped flipping channels when a knock came on her door.

She startled, but calmed immediately, and called out a little nervously, "C-Come in."

A welcome visitor walked in. Dr. Abby Sinian, a brown furred she-kat with short brown hair and dark color eyes, dressed in a light blue shirt with matching pants and white tennis shoes. The archeologist and museum curator smiled warmly as she approached Callie's bed.

"Abby, thanks for coming." Callie said, pressing a button on the bed to raise herself to a more upright position.

"I came as soon I could. Are you alright, Callie?" Abby asked concerned. She'd been terrified when she'd heard what had happened to her friend.

"Yes, the doctor said I could leave tomorrow. They are keeping me here overnight just in case." She reassured her friend.

"That's good news. There's no telling what kind of mess Manx would cause if you were here any longer." Abby joked as she sat down in the chair next to the bed.

"I don't even want to think about that. But I have something I want to ask you." Callie said getting down to business.

Abby nodded, " What do you want to know?"

"Have you ever heard of a species of Kats that could generate energy from their bodies?"

"You mean Iriomkats?" Abby asked in surprise.

"I thought they were extinct." Callie said staring at Abby.

"Many of my colleagues do believe that but I and a few of my other friends don't." Abby said.

"Why?" Callie asked excited now.

"We believe they may be hiding themselves among us. After all, our kind didn't treat Iriomkats very well in our history. They were feared and made slaves to control them then they simply disappeared. It makes sense that they would hide themselves once they escaped our cruelty and ignorance." Abby said plainly, noting that Callie's eyes widened as she apparently remember the history she'd been taught about the lost species.

"But if what you're saying is true, Abby. Why would they attack me?" Callie asked hoping Abby could shed some light on what had happened to her.

"Are your serious, Callie? You actually saw one?" Abby asked surprise by all of this.

"Yes, I think so." Callie began to think over it trying to remember every detail as she began to tell Abby all that had happened.

Abby listened carefully as Callie described everything she could remember of the attack at city hall. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Callie had indeed met an Iriomkat but why he had attacked her and plainly exposed himself to Kats were things she needed to find answers to.

"I don't have any answers for you right now, Callie. Just a guess, perhaps the Iriomkats are tired of hiding." She said.

"That doesn't give them the right to attack!" Callie said firmly.

"You're right, Callie but remember it was only one Iriomkat that did this. Just as there are good and bad Kats so there are good and bad Iriomkats. I truly doubt from what I've read of their history that they are normally like that." She soothed the upset Deputy Mayor.

"Of course, you're right about that. I should know that better than most since I support the SWAT Kats despite how some perceive them." Callie sighed. "But still this make me uneasy. After all they are a dangerous species."

"Yes, well that's true but give them the benefit of the doubt and keep your mind open." Abby urged her. "Don't let fear cloud your judgment, is all I ask. Now, is there anything else I can do for you before I get back to work?" Abby asked gently.

"No, I'm fine. Just look up that information for me please and I promise to keep an open mind." Callie said with a wane smile.

"I appreciate that. You get some rest, okay?" Abby advised as she got up to leave.

"I will, thanks again." Callie said to Abby watching her friend leave. It didn't really ease her mind to know a species that was thought to be extinct could actually be living among them. It made her uneasy though when she thought further about it, if the Iriomkats had meant to cause trouble they would have so much sooner. That train of thought left her with more questions than answers.

Meanwhile, as Abby walked down the white hallway heading for the elevator, her mind went to this new problem she needed to address. Callie was a witness to the fact that Iriomkats truly existed. That information would convince the scientific community that they didn't die out as was thought. Perhaps Katkind could finally exist beside Iriomkats in the open. After all, they obviously were living among them and causing no problems. Maybe they could finally put behind them all the terrible things Katkind had done to them all in the name of fear.

As she rode the elevator down to the main lobby, she reached back to her neck below her collar and traced the pattern her fingers found there. No one knew that she was a mixed breed. Both Kat and Iriomkat. Her grandfather was an Iriomkat who had met his mate, her grandmother, a Kat, during a trip to another country.

They had two sets of twins. One of the oldest set of twins had come her father who met her mother at a dig from his ancestors. She had been his assistant and they had fallen in love. Her father was the first of a mixed breed so that when she was born, Abby looked more like a Kat rather than an Iriomkat but still had their abilities. The down side of her birth was the pure Iriomkats were reluctant to trust the mixed breeds so they weren't accorded the same rights as the pures. She sighed. She wondered if the Elders were aware of this rogue in their midst.

As she stepped into the lobby, on the floor she'd left another elevator opened and two hunters stepped out, looking around.

"Do you know the room number Briggs is in?" The First hunter asked his partner.

"Yeah, room number one hundred five. Let's cast the spell and get out of here. I hate hospitals." The Second hunter said, uneasily.

"Right." With that the two hunters headed for Briggs' room.

As night fell finally, a storm had moved in but brought no rain, only lightning and noise. Into this stormy night, T-Bone drove the streets heading for a place called Tori Drop. Razor had advised him it was a nice place that served excellent sushi. It was quiet around the restaurant when he pulled into the parking lot. He drove to the alley behind the place and parked. He climbed off, left his helmet and set the security on the cyclotron. He walked around the building for the entrance.

Nearly all heads near the door craned their necks when the colorful figure came in. They quickly looked away when he glanced around the room. They didn't want to make him upset. T-Bone looked for a seat and spotted one at the bar itself. He moved to it and spotted someone he hadn't planned on running into for awhile.

Dena was sitting at the bar in her female form eating fried eel and rice. Taking some calming breaths, he continued on and sat next to her.

"Food good here?" He asked nonchalantly.

Out of the corner of his eye, T-Bone saw Dena nearly choke on a piece of her fried eel. Quickly she grabbed her cup of green tea to wash down her food.

"What are you doing here?" Dena growled placing her cup down.

"To unwind, same as you. Razor told me is has good sushi." T-Bone said then signaled the chef for an order.

"I doubt Razor's ever been here." Dena said, focusing her attention back on her meal.

"He said a friend told him." T-Bone said casually. He heard Dena click her tongue in irritation.

"Rick! He's going to pay for this the next time I see him." Dena said knowing that Rick had a paw in this.

"Oh?" T-Bone questioned then quickly ordered his food.

"Rick knows I like to come down here to relax, drop my worries and troubles for a bit." Dena said flatly.

"So which one I am? Trouble or worry?" T-Bone asked, wanting to keep Dena talking.

"Both." Dena said ordering a second order of fried eel with white rice.

"But I've always been that way for you. Nothings really change." T-Bone said. He took a bite of his tempura, a deep fried seafood in a light distinctive batter.

"Tsk! You don't get it do you? Us being mates make things more complicated! You're a vigilante and I'm a…! Why am I bothering to explain all this to you? You should know this already. I'm out of here." Dena slammed her money on the bar getting up and leaving in a huff.

"Hey, wait a minute!" He called to her as he quickly got up from his seat. "Here keep the change!" T-Bone put his money down not caring how much he left as he hurried after her.

Dena was striding across the parking lot for her vehicle when he caught up to her. He wrapped an arm around her waist to make her stop and listen to him.

"What's with you? Why are you avoiding me?" He asked.

"I'm not avoiding you! I just…! Let me go! I don't want to deal with this now!" She said trying to squirm away from him.

"We have to deal with this!" T-Bone said tightly, finding it hard to hold her as she was much stronger than him.

"I don't want to!"

"Why not? If we don't the sexual pressure will just build up again! It will be worse once your heat cycle comes!" He warned.

Dena froze, "You know about that?"

"Serena told me. She also told me that something terrible happened to you when you were a kitten." T-Bone said, feeling Dena stop struggling.

"It has nothing to do with you."

"It might help me to understand you better but if you don't want to talk about that, that's fine. It's the least of our worries. Whether we like it or not we're mates and obviously we can't change that fact." He said plainly.

"You're wrong." Dena said catching T-Bone off guard.

"I'm wrong about what?" T-Bone asked in surprise, as Dena turned to look at him.

"That I don't like it. You just assumed I didn't!" With that Dena jerked away from him and made it to her vehicle while he stood there stunned by what she'd said.

"Dena!" T-Bone shouted but Dena was already starting her vehicle and leaving. 'Damn it! Just what did she mean by that?' T-Bone thought, confused by his mate words.

He just had to make her listen. They needed to clear the air once and for all and to do that he needed to make sure this time she couldn't run away from him or have that friend of hers around.

"And I know just the place." T-Bone said out loud. But it would have to wait till tomorrow. He would see her when and where she would least expect him to show up.


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Two days had passed since Callie Briggs was attacked by the fake enforcer male. Though Dena was doing everything in her power to find the suspect and keep Mayor Manx informed on the investigation's progress, she wasn't making any headway on finding out who had knocked her own enforcer out and stole his uniform.

Briggs couldn't tell her much about the imposter due to the fact he was wearing the blaster shield down on his helmet. All she could tell Dena was that the imposter was tall, dark furred, with a deep voice and a cold pair of gold eyes.

She was annoyed that the hunters had been sent to Ms. Briggs to question her and erase her memories of the specifics. Briggs was a sharp and intelligent Kat and would have been of more value left alone. Nothing Dena could do about that now. Briggs now only had a vague idea about her attack and, of course, no memory of hearing about Iriomkats.

Disgusted, she tossed the skimpy report on her coffee table then picked up her coffee cup. After her last encounter with T-Bone, she had Zachary and Rick swear not to tell Demon about him till she was ready to do so herself. She wanted to be the one to tell him since Demon seemed to have a dislike of Kats. She had a strong feeling he wouldn't be happy her mate was a Kat.

So Zachary and Rick had sworn not to tell Demon. Meanwhile, Rick and Zachary were pushing themselves and their hunters hard to find the rogue. He was becoming far too bold as his attack on Ms. Briggs had shown.

Dena shifted on her sofa trying to figure out what the rogue's next move might be but as she studied the cases over and over, she still couldn't see a pattern. It just seemed so random.

"Damn, at this rate he'll kill again and we'll still not know why!" Dena said in frustration.

Unable to deal with it anymore, Dena stood up grabbed her keys and headed out. She was too stressed out to think clearly. Once inside her vehicle, Dena headed for Club Irma needing to unwind a bit . Some ten minutes later, she arrived at the club. She parked and set the alarm on her vehicle before heading for the entrance.

Stepping through the door, she was hit with music blaring out of the ceiling speakers as multi-colored lights flashed wildly providing an energetic back drop for the Iriomkats and Katkind couples mixing unknowingly on the dance floor.

Dena spotted her brother at the bar serving drinks to a couple. She walked across the floor quickly and took a seat at the end of the bar.

"Hey, sis. What's up?" Demon asked pausing long enough to talk.

"Besides overworking as an Enforcer and hunter? Quite well." Dena said a little sarcastically.

"Drink?" Demon asked already pulling a beer out for her.

"Yes, please." Dena said taking the beer, taking a big swallow. " Thanks, Demon. I needed that."

"Heh, you're welcome. Hey, I hear the rogue attacked Ms. Briggs. She okay?" Demon asked in a fake concerned tone.

"She's fine...already back at work." Dena said with a wane smile.

"And giving you hell as usual?"

"Yep." Dena said taking another swallow of her beer. Demon frowned, 'I knew I should have just killed her.'

"Did she say anything about the rogue? I could keep an eye out for him or her. We get a lot of drifters." Demon said casually, hoping to find out what Briggs might have said.

"Nothing much. Just that it was a male Iriomkat with dark brown fur and gold eyes." Dena said leaning on the bar while holding the cold beer close to her face.

"That hardly narrows it down. But I'll keep…" Demon was going to say but Dena stopped him.

"No, I don't want you to get involved. This guy is dangerous and if something were to happen to you…I…don't.." Dena started to say but choked suddenly, put her beer down and hide her face in her paws. Her shoulders began to shake.

"Sis! What's wrong?" Demon asked, frightened by Dena's silence and behavior.

He opened the small door to the bar and rushed to her side. He took her in his arms and hugged her tightly. Gently turning her face up toward his, he was shocked to see she was crying.

"Dena? What's wrong, hon?" Demon asked, worriedly.

"I'm sorry!" She swallowed and tried to regain control of herself. "I don't know why this happens to me. Every time I think someone's about to leave me whether they mean to or not, I always react like this." Dena said apologizing to him.

"It's okay! I understand, it's because of what happened to us when we were kittens. It's perfectly understandable that'd you'd react that way." He said, comforting her as best as he could.

"Yeah, I'm sure you're right but it's still hard to handle when it happens." Dena sighed as she wiped the tears away. She really hated it when her past would sneak up on her that way.

Demon sighed as his sister began to relax, " Look, I'll still keep an eye out for this guy. But I won't confront him, I promise. I'll call you instead, deal?"

Dena smiled in relief, "Deal. Well, I better head home. I can't stay out too late."

Demon nodded, "Yeah, okay. Drive safe okay?"

"I will. You take care of yourself." Dena said getting up and leaving.

Demon waved good night to his sister as she headed out of the club. Once she was gone, Demon become eerily quite as he laid back against the bar. He hadn't expected Dena to be so traumatized by their past but then she had been the one to find their parent's bodies.

He and Dena had come home from the movies and he had headed immediately upstairs to his room while she had gone to the kitchen and that's where she'd seen them. Her loud screams had sent him racing back downstairs in a panic. He grabbed his sister then spotted the bloody remains of his parents on the once white floor.

Everything after that had been a blur. A neighbor had called the enforcers when they had heard Dena's screams. Soon after they had been separated from each other and sent to different foster homes. That had been a truly stupid thing they had done to them. He was fairly certain it was all that which caused his sister to be this fragile now.

'Perhaps it was because of our unhappy past that she has such a hard time letting others be close to her.' He mused, troubled by this revelation and not certain what he could do about it.

He was jarred out of his troubled thoughts by a drunken female Iriomkat who stumbled against the bar.

"Whoa there are you…" Demon began to ask as he reached out to help her but the moment he touched her, she jerked away.

"Don't touch me!" She snarled angrily, moving further away.

Before Demon could say or do anything else, another female Iriomkat hurried up behind the drunken female and took her by the shoulders firmly.

"Maggie, please calm down! He wasn't trying to hurt you." The other female said.

"I don't care, Kami! I don't want anyone touching me!" Maggie screamed, pulling away from her friend and stumbling away back where she had come from.

"Sorry, I didn't mean any harm." Demon said not knowing why the female had acted that way.

"It's not your fault. My sister's just been through a very traumatic event." Kami sighed watching her sister sit down at their table again.

"Kats?" Demon asked his eyes narrowing.

"Yeah."

"What happened? That is…if you don't mind me asking." He said carefully.

Kami looked at him with anger and hate, electricity snapping off her. He stepped back carefully, but still gave her a look of concern. She noted that and calmed her energies down, rolling her shoulders to ease the tension in them. She felt a little ashamed at going off on one of her own kind when he only asked her what was wrong.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you. I'm just angry and tense about what happened to Maggie but I shouldn't have taken it out on you." She said, blushing with embarrassment.

"It's alright, I shouldn't have asked..." He started to say by way of apology.

"My sister was raped by kats and because of that she'd been drinking steadily to try and forget it happened." Kami blurted out bitterly.

Demon's eyes darkened with anger and hungry excitement. If he could fan the flame of their hate for Kats they would be the first to join his bid to rule over Kats and finally get revenge for all that species had done to theirs.

"I understand your pain very well. My sister and I went through a horrible experience when we were kittens. Kat's had killed our parents then separated us to different foster homes. So I can certainly relate. Why don't you bring your sister back to the bar and tell me about it. At least she'll be able to get it off her chest to a sympathetic ear and feel a little better." He coaxed Kami.

She smiled wanly at him. "Thank you for your concern. I'm sorry to hear about what happened to you and your sister. I'll see if I can convince her to come back here, after all they say a bartender's job is to listen to people's problems." She said softly.

Demon gave her a half smile, " I'm all ears."

On the docks at the edge of the city in an abandoned tuna factory, a figure moved about with strange pink creatures flying around it. The figure was reading the local newspaper. The headlines screamed about a serial killer who killed using electricity. The figure's eyes narrowed beneath it's cloak, a snarl escaped his throat.

"This rogue has the enforcers stirred up which could cause problems for me but then again it could be to my advantage since they wouldn't be watching for me as they searched for him. Hmm..." Dark Kat mused a small evil smile beginning to cross his lips.

In his years in the underground, Dark Kat had seen many things, things that most kats would wish to never see in any lifetime. He had even seen evidence of another species that was thought to be extinct but was very much alive and living amongst them.

He heard about a rogue that had appeared some fifty years ago that killed Kats and Iriomkats alike while this rogue chose to kill Kats only. The rogue in the past had been killed swiftly some two months after its spree had begun by what was apparently their form of 'enforcers'. It was obvious to Dark Kat that the Iriomkats were determined to stay a secret.

However, this new rogue seemed determined to 'out' his species. His kills were out in the open and his choice to try to kill the deputy mayor and possibly the mayor showed he had some plan in mind. By killing both of the city's leaders he would throw the city government into chaos allowing the rogue and possibly others like him to take over the city.

"What a clever Iriomkat but not clever enough. Kats just need to be told and their fear will do the rest. But we will need someone with enough authority but easily influenced to start this wave of fear." He thought aloud.

Suddenly Dark Kat smiled evilly, " I think Lt. Commander Steele might find this information quite useful."

Grave shift was leaving and morning shift was getting ready to start the day at Enforcer Headquarters as a reddish-brown tom with blond hair strode self-importantly through the huge doors. He wore Lieutenant Commander bars on his uniform coat, though many didn't think he deserved them. He was a known to be a coward under fire and to use dirty tricks to get what he wanted. Nobody liked him at all least of all the Commander.

Lt. Commander Steele took the elevator to his fourteenth floor office. It wasn't a very big office but it did have a nice desk and a good view of the city. He breezed in and set his briefcase on the floor. He was going to get a cup of coffee when he noticed the large packet on his desk. Frowning, he took a seat behind his desk and picked up the packet.

"What is this?" He muttered to himself.

He handled it carefully not wanting to set off whatever might be inside. Packets like this had come to his desk before but only as pranks. The last one had been filled with ink that sprayed out and covered his face completely. He'd spent a whole week with his face colored blue, enduring the smirks and laughter of all the enforcers that saw him. Even Feral couldn't help but smirk every time he saw him.

Taking great care opening the packet with a letter opener, Steele was relieved to see it wasn't a prank. He pulled out a letter with dvd case and a white flat case of some kind. Snorting Steele open the letter and read it. 'Is this some kind of joke?' Steele thought as he read over the letter a couple of times.

Putting the letter down and reaching for the DVD, Steele slipped it out of its case and into his computer then hit play. He watched spellbound for some time and didn't move until it finished. Shock and fear played down his spine at what he'd seen. The white case now had his attention. Opening it carefully he was stunned to see five strands of fur and a couple of strands of hair enclosed.

He sat there for several minutes staring at the evidence in his paw. Taking a deep breath, he popped the DVD out of his computer and put it back in its case. He carefully closed the small white case with the hair and fur samples, picked up the letter and put all back into the packet. Standing up, he made for his door and headed for Commander Feral's office.

When he reached the Commander's office he discovered he wasn't in. The secretary was also not in. In a huff, he left the Commander's office area for the hall and spotted Feral's assistant, an older enforcer Sergeant.

"Where's Commander Feral?" He snapped rudely. He was always irritated that the Sergeant always treated him with disdain.

"He called in sick." The Sergeant answered shortly.

"Sick?" Steele said then shook his head. Fine! He would handle this himself. The DVD said there was a major threat against Katkind. He needed to determine if it was true before saying anything to anyone else.

"Is Dr. Konway in today?" Steele asked the Sergeant after a moments pause.

"Yes, he just arrived." The Sergeant said, wondering what Steele was up to.

"Good, I have something for him to check for me." Steele said, hurrying off.


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Two nights had pass since T-Bone had last seen Dena. He hadn't wanted this much time to pass but an attack by one of their enemies kept them busy for those nights. The enforced time away gave him more time to think of what he would say to her. He had already planned on seeking her out in her own apartment. She couldn't avoid him there and wouldn't have an excuse to leave.

So here he was parking his cyclotron in an alley next to Dena's apartment building. He set its security system and covered it from view. Using his grappling line in his glovatrix he rappelled to her balcony.

Shooting up to it and catching the railing, quietly vaulting over it. He froze and listened for some minutes but heard no outcry. Moving cautiously, he tried the sliding glass door and found it unlocked. He slide it open slowly. Moving the curtain away carefully, he peered into the living area. Only a single lamp was on with no sign of Dena. With a sigh of relief, he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. He froze and listened again. This time his ears picked up the sound of water running.

'She must be taking a shower.' He thought, blushing at the image of Dena naked in the shower that jumped into his mind. Shaking his head to clear it, he moved to the bedroom.

On the night stand by the bed a picture frame caught T-Bone's eye. Walking over to it, he picked the picture frame up and studying the image under the small night lamp. It was a picture of Dena, Zachary and Rick standing in a close hugging group in front of Megakat High School.

Dena was in her true form smiling for the camera with Zachary and Rick. The strange thing about it was that T-Bone realized Dena was smiling for real. 'I wonder if she'll ever smile like that for me.' He thought wistfully as he set the picture frame back down.

Sighing he realized that he truly knew nothing about Dena at all. The whole time he had been around her, she had been in her male persona as Commander Ulysses Feral. A cold, hard-nosed, by-the-book leader that he had never got along with before he was thrown out of the enforcers much less afterwards when he became a SWAT Kat.

'Who was this she-kat really?' He wondered. What he did know now was that she was really Dena Feral, Iriomkat. Her true mission: To protect and serve her people as well as protect the Kats she had sworn to defend when she became Commander. She also had two friends who she cared deeply about and who cared for her. He would have to learn who this person was and forget the persona he thought he'd known all these years.

Suddenly the shower stopped running, interrupting his musing. He made to leave the room and was only halfway between the bed and the hall door when the bathroom door swung open. Steam poured out as Dena stepped through drying her hair with a towel and wearing nothing but a silky pair of underwear.

When she raised her head she froze as she caught sight of T-Bone standing there gaping at her. Her eyes blazed with fury.

"What the hell are you doing in my bedroom?" She hissed in outrage, hurriedly wrapping the towel around her torso.

"I…well…" T-Bone stammered, completely mortified and unable to think of what to say that didn't sound stupid.

Infuriated, Dena saw red. Without warning, she raised her paw and made a small ball of energy in her palm and shot it at T-Bone sending him flying through the doorway and into the hall. T-Bone cried out in shock but not pain as he landed on his back. The energy ball had not been that powerful so he was not hurt more like surprised. He lay still for some moments trying to gather his wits.

The door to the bedroom slammed in his face. He slowly got to his feet and headed to the living room and sat on the couch to wait for her.

Meanwhile, Dena fumed as she searched a drawer for a bra. Putting it on, she added an over large enforcer t-shirt and pj shorts.

In the living room, T-Bone tried to think of something to repair the damage he'd unwittingly done. 'This wasn't how I planned for this evening to go.' He sighed ruefully. He felt mildly ashamed to have been caught in her bedroom without an invitation. Suddenly the door down the hall opened with a bang and Dena stormed into the room.

"Explain!" Dena snapped, standing rigidly before his seated form.

He spread his paws in supplication and said, "I'm sorry for invading your bedroom. It was thoughtless of me. As for being here, we really need to talk and this was the only place I knew you couldn't avoid me. I'm not leaving till we do."

"Really, as if there was anything to talk about. You made it very clear you don't like the thought of us being mates. It's just as well since it couldn't have worked out anyway. Now go home and leave me be!" She said in a huff.

T-Bone shook his head and stood up. "I told you I'm not leaving until we get this straight. I'm tired of you pushing me away. Why are you doing that?" He demanded.

Dena frowned at him in annoyance. "What more do I have to say? You don't want us to be mates that's a given. Besides, why do you care? Our prior history proves we can hardly stand each other, have different views on how the law should be upheld and I don't care for males who have a thing for the Deputy Mayor." She finished dryly.

Believing that put an end to things, Dena turned her back on him, keeping a tight rein on her emotions. She didn't want him knowing how much saying that hurt her deeply but it was for the best. She simply could not be involved with him right now.

"Those excuses won't work anymore! Too many things have changed for them to apply and leave the Deputy Mayor out of this. Those aren't the real reasons you are pushing me away and I want to know what is!" He insisted, reaching out and turning her back around to face him.

"Why are you doing this? Why are you acting like you even care?" Dena asked angrily, her eyes flashing with fire.

"I care because I'm learning that I want to know who you are not who you are pretending to be. Everything you throw at me is based on our prior history before I learned you were female. That has no bearing on the here and now. I feel all the emotions you do through our growing bond. There's no way I can just shut them off now." T-Bone said strongly, pulling her closer to him. "Dena, I want to know you not Commander Feral but you and I can't do that if you keep pushing me away. Now tell me what the real reason is!" He said, shaking her a little.

"I tell you it doesn't matter!" She snapped trying to pull away.

"Well, I guess I'll just have to convince you that's not true." He said huskily as he pulled her tightly against him and gave her a deeply passionate kiss.

It was a full, no holds barred kiss that had her closing her eyes as all her controls on her emotions faded away in his strong arms and emotions. T-Bone gave an inward sigh of relief as he felt Dena give herself to him. The bonding process still confused him but he couldn't deny that the singing emotions they were sharing were sending them soaring.

He slipped his arms to her waist and rubbed himself against her warm heat. She moaned as a throbbing sensation woke up between her legs. Their bodies fitted together like a perfect puzzle as their tongue dueled. His nose picked up her growing arousal sending flaming heat to his groin.

'Kat alive! Her scent!' He moaned as he broke the kiss causing her to meow in complaint. He buried his nose in her neck taking in more of her scent. It was intoxicating and he couldn't get enough of it. He nipped her neck causing her to gasp and moan. She dug her claws into his chest G-suit to hold him closer. She so ached to feel his fur beneath her fingers.

Excited and aroused, T-Bone pulled back from her so that he could remove his G-suit. As he was removing his t-shirt, Dena pushed him backward to the couch impatiently, helping him remove his shirt. She straddled his hips hissing with pleasure as she rubbed her wet heat against that cloth covered male hardness. He groaned at her urgent movements against his kathood that sent jolts of pleasure through him.

Anxious to touch her, he pulled her t-shirt off and tossed it aside then cupped her breasts still encased in her bra. She mewed with pleasure at his touch causing her to move her hips more insistently trying to relieve the growing ache between her legs.

T-Bone moaned, arching his back as shock waves of pleasure raced through him. They rubbed in unison faster and harder causing their pleasure to spiral higher and higher till they flew together over the edge. T-Bone roared as he spilled his seed within his boxers and Dena screamed her own climax. Their bodies trembled for several seconds then went limp.

Dena lay sprawled atop the brawny tabby. He raised a paw and caressed her back slowly. Their mixed scents smelled wonderful and made him desire her even more.

"Do you wish to take this further?" T-Bone murmured softly, wanting to be sure she agreed to this and wouldn't regret it later.

Dena laid there thinking. Her head was clear for the moment even though her body desired more of him. Did she want to take this to the next level? She was in turmoil about what had just happened and was concerned about what would happen between them if she allowed this to continue. It was so hard to think with his scent filling her nose and feeling his arms around her that brought a comfort that she had not felt in a long time. In the end, that was what decided her.

"Yes, I do." Dena said finally.

"You sure? I don't want you to feel you have to." T-Bone asked again, making her certain of her decision.

"It's fine. Unless you think you can't handle me." Dena said hiding her smirk though T-Bone could hear it.

"Oh, yeah? I'll show you." T-Bone said, his voice going deeper making her shiver.

Dena gasp as T-Bone rubbed the spot just above her tail while stroking her back. He watched her face as she responded to his many erotic touches. He'd never had a female as responsive as Dena was to his touch it fired him up. His cock filled with heat once more as she writhed above him.

"Wrap your legs around me." T-Bone ordered huskily as he stood up, holding her up with his palms under her buttocks. As she complied, he carried her back to her bedroom and kicked the door closed.

The night passed swiftly for T-Bone and Dena as they coupled through the night. It wasn't until the dawn's early light shone through the partly open curtains, that Dena awakened and found her self in T-Bone embrace. His arms were wrapped around her body as his legs were entwined with hers and their tails were in a twist.

Sighing, she moved closer to his body wanting to enjoy his body warmth a little longer. But it was not to be as a insistent and loud ringing broke the silence. Cursing, Dena turned to her night stand and hurriedly shut off her alarm clock before it could awaken the tabby. T-Bone simply grunted but didn't wake. He did, however, reach out in his sleep and pull her back against him, his nose nuzzling her neck as he slept on.

Dena sighed blissfully, falling back to sleep. It was some hours later that a familiar ringing sound penetrated Dena's slumber. She jolted awake and made to get out of the bed but had trouble getting her still sleeping mate to release her. Tickling him behind the ear finally made him open his arms and she was able to make her escape. She ran down the hall to the living room and snatched up her phone.

"Feral here." Dena answered, making sure to change her voice.

"Sir, well you be coming in today?" Asked her faithful Sergeant.

Dena paused a moment before answering, " No, I was just about to call. I'm not feeling to well today so have Steele take command."

"Yes, sir. I'll see tomorrow then." The Sergeant said briskly then broke the connection.

She sighed, hung up the phone then stretched. Now completely awake she turned and headed back to her room. She found T-Bone still sleeping and couldn't help letting a warm smile flit across her face. T-Bone looked so peaceful when he slept. She shook her head to clear away her thoughts then taking a deep breath she made for the bathroom.

The sound of the shower finally woke T-Bone. Blinking awake, he lay still, taking in the fact that he wasn't in his own room and remembering who he'd spent the night with then rolled to his side and noted the closed bathroom door.

Pushing the bed covers off, T-Bone got off the bed and stretched. He spotted his boxers and was putting them back on when his stomach growled hungrily. 'Time for breakfast' He thought cheerfully as he made for the kitchen.

He'd just finished making a wonderful food for them both when Dena strolled in wearing a new large shirt and pj pants. She stared at him in surprise but said nothing as she took a seat at her kitchen table. T-Bone kept his silence as well as he placed a full plate before her then one at his place before taking a seat and digging in. She began to eat her food, a pleased expression on her face at how good it tasted. They ate in easy silence, surprisingly comfortable with each other.

Once finished, Dena gathered the dishes and placed them in the sink to do wash later. She turned around with her back against the counter and stared at T-Bone for a long moment. T-Bone eyed her patiently, waiting for her to make the first move.

"You want to know why I've been pushing you away?" She asked simply.

"Well, yeah." T-Bone said continuing to hold her eyes with his.

Dena turned her head away and stared into the distance as she spoke, "Everyone whose ever been close to me leaves. My parents left, then my brother and some of my friends. So, in time, will you." She said with certainty.

T-Bone frowned at that statement. He wasn't certain how he should respond to it so he waited to see if there was more. She turned back to him but her eyes were shadowed by her bangs.

"Serena told you that something terrible had happened in my kittenhood, right?" She asked but hurried on before he could respond. "My parents were murdered by Kats. I was the one to find their bodies." She swallowed hard trying to keep her emotions from spilling out but was failing as always. 'Why does this always happen when I talk about this? Even after all the years?' She thought helplessly. "Then my brother was taken from me and placed in a horrible foster home, I couldn't find him until he found me recently. I just can't take those I love and care for leaving me." She managed to finish.

T-Bone felt all her pain, sorrow, loathing, and the heavy feeling of abandonment which was the strongest coming through their bond. 'So that's what's been eating her? No wonder she's afraid to make attachments.' He thought in sympathy for her anguish. 'Now I know what I need to do.'

He stood up from the table and pulled her into a comforting hug. Dena growled and tried to push him away but he wouldn't allow it and held her tighter. He would never let her go. He realized that now, he just had to convince her too.

"I'm not going anywhere." T-Bone murmured gently, nuzzling her face.

"You say that now but you will leave me when the time comes. That's why I told you to stay away." Dena said, refusing to believe him. She would only end up in pain if she let him in.

T-Bone was about to say something more but was interrupted by the phone. Dena pushed on his chest and this time he let her go. He released a breath he'd been holding as he wondered what he could do to convince her he wasn't going to leave her as all the others had.

Suddenly, he heard Dena shout from the living room. He quickly walked there to see what was wrong.

"He discovered what?!" Dena shouted, her voice sounding completely shocked and off guard.

"Dena, what's wrong?" T-Bone asked, coming to stand near her.

She waved him off as she listened to the voice on the other end of the phone then she slammed the phone down and grabbed her remote for her TV. She flicked it on to reveal a Kats Eye News report. Ann Gora was standing before the doors of the Enforcer Building and standing beside her was Steele. 'What the heck is going on?' T-Bone thought as he watched the drama unfold.

"This is Ann Gora of Kats Eye News. We are standing in front of Enforcer Headquarters with Lt. Commander Steele who has made a shocking discovery that could very well change the course of history for all of kat kind." She announced to the audience then turned to Steele and pushed the microphone in his face. "Lt Commander Steele just what have you discovered?" She asked.

"I have incontrovertible proof that a species of kat known as the Iriomkats, thought to be extinct, are in reality still alive and living among us." Steele said sounding quite smug but there was a fearful note in his voice as well.

"And you have been able to confirm this?" Ann asked skeptically.

"Yes, I have. I…" Steele began to answer but was cut off when Dena flicked the TV off abruptly.

She tossed the remote on the table then hugged herself. T-Bone saw fear, dread, and concern in her eyes. Unexpectedly, she turned and ran to her bedroom. He followed her and found her getting dressed in a hurry.

"Where are you going?" T-Bone asked

"I have to talk with Zachary." Dena said not looking at him.

At the mention of the other male in Dena's life, T-Bone felt a flash of anger and jealousy to his utter shock. He knew Zachary was her best friend and an Iriomkat so it wasn't unusual that she wanted to seek his advice. He really shouldn't be feeling this way especially after last night but he couldn't seem to shake it.

"I'm coming with you." He said firmly, moving to get dressed himself.

"No! You can't come!" Dena said turning to stop him.

"Why not?"

"Because it's not your problem! Stay out of this!" She insisted.

T-Bone growled, " Since when do I ever stay out of things?"

Dena grit her teeth at his stubbornness, " Then how about staying out of it just this once for me?"

"No." T-Bone said firmly.

"This isn't your problem nor your species to worry about!" Dena said standing her ground.

"It is now! You're a part of it and so I am." T-Bone said not giving Dena any more time to argue, "Come on, we can get to the club faster with the cyclotron."

Dena looked at the tiger tom then sighed, " Alright, let's go."

Across the city Elder Serena was in her living room watching the same Kats Eye News report. Her mate, Jake, was watching too, shaking his head and reaching out for the remote and shutting off the set.

"It's started." Jake said not taking his eyes off the blank TV.

Serena nodded, "Yes, it has."

"I know you want to tell her." Jake said putting his arms around her shoulders.

"I not going to say anything, Jake, just point her in the right direction and hope for the best. What about you?" Serena asked.

"Hmm…I need to talk with Rick, otherwise when the me from this time asks Rick for help he won't refuse." Jake said thinking on how to convince Rick to help.

"You don't think he'll help?" She asked in concern.

"Dena is his friend and he won't do anything he thinks she wouldn't agree to." Jake explained.

Serena become quiet for a moment then said, "Maybe it isn't you who convinces Rick to work with this time period's Razor...but Dena herself."

"How that?" Jake asked curiously.

"Rick will listen to what you have to say but he won't do what you say since he doesn't know you well enough." Serena explained quietly.

"True. Then you'll have to talk to Dena about this. You could tell her to agree to work with Razor." Jake said thoughtfully.

Serena nodded, "I will."

Suddenly the phone began to ring and Serena shook her head at it, " That will be for me. I'll be working late tonight." Serena said getting up.

Jake watched as his mate answered the phone knowing it was most likely one of the other Elders calling to ask what they should do now. He knew Serena was in for a tough night with all that was going to happen.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

As T-Bone and Dena raced across town, inside their destination chaos reined. Club Imre was closed to the public and was, at the moment, filled with panic stricken Iriomkats of all ages. Zachary and Rick had their paws full trying to soothe everyone's nerves, coax them to be calm and to assure them the Elders were addressing the problem and would talk to them soon.

Zachary could already feel himself becoming short tempered with all that was happening. He couldn't blame anyone for being on edge but he was having a hard time being sympathetic when pures decided to snap at others who were half bloods or married to Kats. That racial prejudice could spark a major rift among their kind. If the Elders didn't speak soon there could be violence next.

He and Rick had escaped the mess downstairs for the bar where it was a little quieter. He brightened briefly when he saw Dena come rushing through the front door but soured seconds later at the sight of T-Bone practically on her heels.

"What's he doing here?" He growled at his brother.

"Don't know but it seems Dena's bringing him in doesn't it?" Rick asked, not very pleased to see the two together either.

"Bastard! He can't get Briggs so he goes after Dena? No way in hell!" Zachary rumbled furiously, stomping over to them.

Dena saw Zachary come charging toward them, his face and body language giving away his angry feelings. It was very clear he was in a foul mood.

"Zachary doesn't look happy." T-Bone said uneasily, not missing the angry mood the oncoming Iriomkat was displaying. He tensed, preparing himself for a fight if Zachary started one.

"I'll talk to him. Wait for me by the bar." Dena told him firmly, before striding away to intercept Zachary. Giving T-Bone no choice but to do as she'd asked.

She walked right up to Zachary and halted him with a paw to his chest. She began to talk to him in a low, even voice.

T-Bone watched tensely as she and Zachary argued in low voices. Zachary suddenly turned and walked away with Dena following close behind. He didn't like to see Dena leave him but felt it would make things worse if he intervened. So, unhappily, he went to the bar to wait for her return. As he approached, he noted Rick was tending the bar tonight.

"Hi," T-Bone said trying to be friendly as he took a seat.

"Why are you here?" Rick asked coldly, his eyes narrowed.

T-Bone frowned, "To support Dena during this difficult time." He said carefully, uncertain why Rick was so hostile.

"Drop the act, faker." Rick spit out nastily then pretended to ignore the tom by picking up a wet glass and drying it.

"Faker? What are you talking about?" T-Bone asked, bewildered. Zachary he could understand the anger but not Rick.

"Don't act so freakin innocent! You're pretending you care for Dena when you really don't! That's cold!" Rick growled at him.

"What?!" T-Bone blurted in shock.

"You heard me!"

"Why would you even think that?" T-Bone asked, totally taken aback.

"Maybe because you'd made it plain you'd rather bed the Deputy Mayor? You're just using Dena till you have Briggs." Rick said nastily.

"That's not true!" T-Bone said, beginning to get steamed.

"Yeah, right. Everyone knows you've had the hots for Briggs for years. As if you would change that! You hate Dena too much to ever actually care or love her." Rick said flatly.

"You're wrong! I do care about Dena! We've just…" T-Bone began to protest hotly.

"Quit your lying! You may be fooling Dena but you're not fooling us! The minute you get Briggs you'll leave Dena and when you do, Zachary and I will be the ones to hurt you two." Rick threatened.

T-Bone stared into Rick's furious eyes in stunned disbelief. No way would he take this without an argument. He'd just learned how much he cared about Dena, no one was going to push him away from her now.

"I'm not faking anything! Yes, I liked Briggs but it was infatuation. With Dena it's much deeper than that. I can't call it love yet but in time it will be!" He said without a shred of doubt.

"So you're a two-timer? My, aren't you mate of the year." Rick said, not hearing or caring about T-Bone's words.

"Look you, no one's bothered to see things from my point of view. I learned rather suddenly that the Commander I thought I knew was really a female and before I have a chance to get used to that I'm suddenly bombarded with these feelings for this stranger then I'm told we are mates. I think I've done pretty good at beginning to get a handle on all this. Yesterday we had a breakthrough. I know now what her life was like when she was a kitten and I want to do everything I can to make her feel safe and secure. It will take everything I have to convince her I won't leave her. So cut me some slack here!" T-Bone was nearly shouting when he finally finished and slammed his paws on the bar as he stood nose to nose with Rick

Rick just stood there not flinching from T-Bone's fury. He heard the words the tom was saying and felt the emotions behind them. The big tom believed in what he was saying and he was right they hadn't thought of what all this had done to him and what he'd been expected to accept. That hadn't been fair. But Rick couldn't help but feel some doubt that T-Bone couldn't keep his promise.

"I believe you…for now. But I swear if you hurt Dena, I will hurt you." Rick hissed out then turned away to walk down the end of the bar, effectively ending the conversation.

T-Bone fell back down on the stool feeling emotionally drained. He had felt justified in defending himself but, as Razor would have told him, there were other ways to do it than getting in the face of a dangerous Iriomkat hunter. He was just lucky Rick was a reasonable person. He could have just as easily killed him rather than just give him a warning.

He could understand Rick's feelings though. If Razor was dating someone who treated him the same way he had treated Dena when they first met, he'd be angry and protective too. Of course, he wouldn't have believed what that person said till they had actually proven it. But if that person hurt his best friend he would want to hurt him or her.

"Man, what do I do now?" He said aloud, staring into space.

"Do about what?" Dena asked, causing T-Bone to startle.

"Oh..uh...nothing important. You and Zachary talk things out?" T-Bone asked, changing the subject.

At hearing her best friend's name, Dena looked away, "Sort of. He just doesn't…never mind. The meetings about to start." She said, changing the subject herself.

T-Bone didn't press her as they went downstairs to the meeting room. He took a seat next to her and placed an arm around her shoulders in comfort. Through their bond he could feel anger, hurt, and dejection that had to be from her less than happy talk with Zachary. He hugged her close and nuzzled her cheek. He was pleased when she welcomed his attempt at soothing her with a deep purring he felt through his body.

Sitting not far away was a simmering Zachary. He watched with hooded, hostile eyes, a rage building within him at the sight of the two sitting so close together. His fists clenched beneath the table and his teeth were grit together. He couldn't sit still and watch them any longer so he lunged to his feet and left the room.

Rick sighed in annoyance and pain for his brother. He would have left as well but one of them had to be there to hear what the Elders had to say. So sighing regretfully, he looked away from the pair and noted the Elders were just filing in. When they were seated, voices began shouting questions from all parts of the room. Elder Sarena stood up and all went silent.

"We have come to a decision. It took us many hours of discussion but we came to only one conclusion, now that Katkind knows about our existence there is no point in trying to hide any longer. We will reveal ourselves and try to live in harmony with them." Sarena said firmly.

There was a moment of silence then outcries of fear and disbelief filled the room. The response was not unexpected.

"Are you crazy?!"

"We can't do that! We'll just be made slaves again!"

"They'll fear us just as before!

"We'll have to defend ourselves from the ones that will try to kill us!"

"They'll be bloodshed!"

"Families will be broken again if we do this!"

Voices of fear and anger overlapped each other filling the room with the roar of rejection at the decision. It was so loud, the Elders had trouble getting everyone to calm down.

T-Bone winced at all the fear and loathing pouring out from all those around him. 'Were we really this awful to them?' T-Bone wondered with sorrow and disgust. 'It's no wonder they want nothing to do with us.'

Finally, Elder Roy stood up and yelled, "Everyone calm down!" Except for some residual muttering from a few, the room fell silent.

"We don't intend for everyone to reveal themselves at first. One has been chosen whose already known to the Katizens population as a forthright, brave and honest individual. This person will ..." Sarena started to explain before Oliver rudely cut her off.

"Dena Feral, come up here!" He called loudly.

Everything went still as all turned to stare at Dena, who felt very uncomfortable with all the attention directed at her as she stood up and made for the stage. T-Bone, not wanting her to be alone, stood as well and followed her. Both came to a halt in front of the Elders. T-Bone took Dena's paw in his as they waited for what the Elders had to say.

Serena shot Oliver a brief look of loathing. She knew he was enjoying this and with good reason. If anything should go wrong it would be Dena who would be at the mercy of the Katizens rather then their entire species.

"I'm sorry, Dena. I know this puts you in a very precarious situation but it was thought your position would provide you some protection and because of your reputation we hoped it will withstand the unveiling. If they accept you then we know our two species can live together." She said with a small smile of encouragement then she turned to the tom. "T-Bone..."

"Yes?" T-Bone asked cautiously, wondering what Serena wanted from him.

"When Dena reveals her secret, I want you to be at her side. She will need you to get through all of this." Serena said, seriously.

"I will be nearby, don't worry. I won't leave my mate to face this alone but I can't stand in front of everyone while she does this." T-Bone said. There was a roar of anger from the crowd. Dena turned to him, shock on her face.

T-Bone shouted above the din. "Hear me out!" Silence fell but the looks he got were hostile.

"The Katizens of this city see us as being antagonists. If I stand beside her in full view of everyone then she will be discredited for associating with a known vigilante and your cause will be lost before it can even be heard. If they learn we are mates then there will be an uprising among her enforcers. Besides that, people will think there's a conspiracy going on and all hell will fall on us both. So no...I can't stand at her side but I will be there just no one will know it." He explained.

"You are absolutely correct, T-Bone. We had forgotten that fact in our concern to solve this problem. Thank you for preventing a disaster. We will be satisfied that you'll be close by." Sarena said, chagrined that they had forgotten something so important. She was very glad T-Bone, himself, had been aware of the danger.

Dena relaxed and sighed inwardly, kicking herself for not remembering that fact herself. Of course, she'd been preoccupied with what the Elders had decided. She was glad T-Bone had though. She shuddered at what would have happened...it didn't bear thinking about...just the unveiling would be bad enough.

While a vast majority of the population of Iriomkats were attending the meeting at the club, a much smaller group was meeting secretly in a warehouse. Many small tables were scattered around the large space, each having a set of chairs. Each table had a pitcher of water and glasses. Nearly all the chairs were filled and the attendees talked softly amongst themselves waiting for the meeting to start. At the head of the space near a back office, three stools sat on a small stage. The only illumination were fat candles placed at on each table providing a warm glow.

Suddenly, the back office door opened and three Iriomkats stepped through. In walked Demon Feral with Kami and Maggie in tow.

The three took their seat on the stools waiting on the stage. Kami and Maggie took the two ends while Demon sat on the one in the middle. Everyone in the room ceased their conversations and directed their attention to the three.

Demon studied his audience for a moment. There wasn't as many as he'd hoped but it was enough to gain control of this city. With a small smile, Demon began to speak.

"Thank you for coming. As you all know, this morning Lt. Commander Steele has provided proof to Katkind that we exist." He paused to see if anyone wanted to say anything but they continued to stare at him so he went on.

"While we sit here, the Elders are most likely telling our friends and families that we must now reveal ourselves and try to live with Katkind. We all know that is imposable! Centuries ago Katkind enslaved us. They exerted absolute control over our lives; heaping punishment on us, forcing us to labor for them, hunting and killing us, and breaking up families to obtain what they wanted from us. " He said grimly.

Demon went silent for a little to allow everyone to remember how it had been for them. He heard various mutters of agreement.

"There can be no peace between Iriomkats and Katkind. They fear us too much to allow it. They would rather see us dead! You know this to be true since even in hiding we are not safe. Kats killed my parents, split my sister and I up to different foster homes, never seeing each other again. It was just plain luck that we found each other again just recently. But all of you have suffered much worse than I." He said passionately.

At this everyone began talking at once. All their voices intermingling with the sound of their anger and fear as they agreed with their leader.

"Demon is right! Kats will try to either kill or control us!"

"I lost my mate and kittens to Kats! I say we do the same to them!"

"Even hidden we suffer! We can't move freely till we take control!"

"We must strike now! It's the Kats turn to be enslaved!"

As they shouted the very things Demon wanted to do, he hid a smile of triumph. When everything was said and done he would have to thank Zachary for allowing him to see the list of Iriomkats who were just like him. Their anger and hate was what he needed to take control of Megakat City. Now all he had to do was lay out the plan for accomplishing this to his new army.

It was getting very late and night had fallen some time ago when Dena and T-Bone were finally able to leave the club. T-Bone drove them back to Dena's place. She waited as he hid the cyclotron and set its security system.

Once done, they moved until they were under Dena's balcony. T-Bone shot a grappling hook to snag the roof from his glovatrix then wrapped an arm around Dena's waist as she put her arms around his neck before retracting the line. They shot up to the balcony in seconds.

He helped her over the rail then heaved himself over before disengaging his grappling hook and retracting it. She opened the sliding glass door and was waiting for him on the other side. He stepped through and closed the door behind him.

"Are you okay with this unveiling?" T-Bone asked, coming to her side.

"Someone has to do it. It makes sense it should be me." She said in resignation as she closed the blinds on the door.

"Yeah, but if anything goes wrong it will be you whose targeted." T-Bone said, concerned.

"It has to be done, T-Bone. There's no point in worrying about what ifs. We'll just have to deal with what happens when it does. So let's not rehash it all over again, okay?" Dena said with a sigh. "I'm hungry, how about you?" She asked.

T-Bone sighed and understood there wasn't anymore to be said about tomorrow. He allowed his mate to change the subject. She'd discussed the subject to death enough at the club, so he dropped it but it didn't stop him from worrying anyway.

"Yeah, I am actually. I know a twenty-four hour Chinese restaurant. Want to order from there?" He asked.

"Sounds perfect!" She sighed as headed to the bedroom to change clothes.

"Anything you want specifically?" He asked as he reached for the phone.

"No, anything you order will be fine." Dena called out behind her then disappeared.

As T-Bone called in their order, Dena sighed and began to undress. She could feel her mate's concerned for her. She was actually quite scared at what might happen. Would her Enforcers fear her? Would Manx order her to leave? Would the city try to take control of her kind? There were so many questions and no answers. The guesses were frightening enough.

She shook herself. 'Stop scaring yourself, it will do you no good.' She told herself. Wearing a comfortable sweatsuit, she returned to the leaving room just as there was a knock on her front door. She knew the food couldn't have arrived already as she made her way to it. She noted that T-Bone had left the room, probably for the kitchen to get something to drink.

Frowning she peered through her peep hole and saw it was Demon. Surprised she opened the door and stayed out of sight until he had stepped into her apartment then closed it again.

"What are you doing here?" She asked then saw two meal boxes and drinks being held in her brother's paws.

"Hi sis! I've brought you some dinner." Demon said smiling warmly.

'Oh shit!' She thought as she stared at her twin unable to think of what to say. She offered him an uneasy smile instead.

"Something wrong? Did I come at a bad time?" Demon asked, noticing her uneasy behavior.

"Um, not exactly...its just...well...I hadn't planned on telling you yet but now that you're here I guess I might as well." She said with a helpless shrug of her shoulders.

"Okay, what is it you want to tell me?" Demon asked setting the food on her coffee table.

At that very moment, T-Bone strolled in from the kitchen. "The food will be here in about…" T-Bone was saying but stopped when he saw Demon. He eyed the stranger carefully but said nothing. He moved closer to Dena and noted the other food there. He glanced at Dena questioningly, letting her tell him what was going on. 'Who is this guy?' He thought detecting a similarity between Dena and the strange male.

Demon felt himself stiffen at the sight of the large SWAT Kat. 'What's he doing here? Did he find out about me? About us?' Demon thought furiously. For a moment Demon considered killing T-Bone, but a paw on his shoulder made him pause.

"Demon, this what I wanted to tell you. T-Bone is my mate. T-Bone this my twin brother Demon." Dena said slowly, letting the information sink in for both males. She was worried her brother wouldn't take the news too well. She was right if the sharp note in his voice was any indication.

"You're joking, right?" Demon asked, disbelief in his voice. 'No! My sister can't be mated to him! Not a Kat!' He thought, feeling a rage build in him.

"Sorry, no joke! We are mates." T-Bone said carefully, not liking how Dena's brother was looking at him. 'Geez, it's almost like he wants to kill me.' He thought, a shiver racing down his spine. He wouldn't be too thrilled to learn he was right.


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven **

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

The night had passed and it was now late afternoon. The sun was shining brightly with a nice summer wind blowing in with little clouds crossing the sky. On the streets below, ignoring the beautiful day, Demon strode down the street in a furious state of mind. His paws were shoved deeply in his jean pockets.

A roiling cloud of dark emotions surrounded him, making those he passed to keep their distance. After learning the news about Dena and T-Bone's mated status, he had quickly excused himself from her home.

He had see the troubled and unhappy look on his twin face at his behavior but that couldn't be helped. He just couldn't stand the thought of her being intimate with that creature and soon to be bearing that Kat's filth.

He was in such a rage, that sparks of static were coming off his fur. As much as he would love to kill T-Bone, he couldn't. Not when his sister would suffer tearing pain if her mate died. He just couldn't do that to her. He loved her too much.

As he stormed on down the sidewalk, having no particular place in mind to go, his feet lead him to Club Imre. He blinked in surprise at his destination but shrugged it off and used his key, Zachary had given him, to get in since the club was closed at this hour. Opening the door, he stepped through, closing and relocking it once more behind him then walking through the entryway over the thick carpet. He halted suddenly when he saw Zachary was there sitting at the bar and drinking. Frowning in puzzlement, he went to the Iriomkat's side.

"Zachary, you okay man?" Demon asked quietly.

"Hardly." Zachary said pouring himself another drink and downing it in one go.

Demon took the seat next to the chocolate colored tom. He could clearly see that something was troubling Zachary. Whatever it was, Demon wanted to help him.

"Something happen?" Demon asked carefully

"T-Bone." Zachary snarled, remembering how T-Bone had comforted Dena yesterday.

Demon eyes widen in astonishment then narrowed in anger, " What about T-Bone?"

Zachary looked at Demon for a second then away, "I can't say."

"Zachary, do you know that Dena and T-Bone were mated?" Demon asked.

"How did you know?" Zachary asked sharply, looking at him again.

"Dena told me…last night. I caught T-Bone in her apartment when I dropped in to see her." Demon said tightly showing his displeasure.

"Son of a …!" Zachary snarled, stood up suddenly, turned, and hurled his glass across the room in fury, ignoring the sound of it breaking when it hit the opposite wall.

"I take it you don't like the news either." Demon asked, not flinching at Zachary's display of temper.

"Of course not! That Kat's just using her! Why can't she see that?" Zachary cried out, his fingers running through his hair in frustration.

"Using her? What do you mean?" Demon asked tautly.

"T-Bone's been after Calico Briggs since the first day the SWAT Kats showed up. I doubt he would change that suddenly to be with Dena." Zachary hissed moving back to sit down.

"So he's using her till he gets Briggs?" Demon asked, his fists clenching at what T-Bone had done to Zachary and what he was doing now to Dena.

"Yeah, if only we could…no, the Elders wouldn't allow it." Zachary said trailing off as he reached over the bar for a new glass.

"Won't allow what?" Demon asked seeing that Zachary knew something.

"It…nothing. Forget it." Zachary said pouring a new drink.

Demon reached out to stop Zachary from finishing his drink. He leaned closer and his golden eyes became darker.

"Allow what?" Demon asked seriously.

Zachary looked at him then looked down at the floor. "It's a spell. It was created some time after our kind went into hiding. It's know as a 'soul breaking spell." He whispered.

Demon blinked. "Soul breaking spell? I've never heard of that before."

"It's an ancient spell. It was used on Iriomkats who were mated to Kats. It would break the empathy bond between them allowing them to be no longer mated to each other." Zachary said not understanding why Demon wanted to know this.

"How dose one cast the spell?" Demon asked urgently.

"You can't. It's forbidden now." Zachary said shaking his head.

Demon let Zachary's arm go, " Are you sure?"

"Yes," Zachary said sighing as he took a deep drink.

"But…someone must know how to cast the spell?" Demon pressed, eager to use this spell to separate his sister from that Kat.

"Um…just one. His name is Bruce Anwar."

"Anwar? Isn't that one of the four clans that first learned magic?" Demon asked in surprise.

Zachary nodded, " That's the one. His clan developed that spell when one Anwar found himself mated to a Kat."

"Where does he live?" Demon asked, nearly breathless to have this information.

"Why do you want to know?" Zachary asked, becoming suspicious.

"Because Zachary we are going to free my sister from T-Bone. You want that don't you?" Demon coaxed the drunk and unhappy Iriomkat tom.

Zachary looked at Demon while his drink soddened mind worked on the question then in a somber clear voice, he said firmly, "Yes, I do."

The day had been long and difficult for Dena and it was getting progressively more difficult as the afternoon waned. With Steele's release of information on Iriomkats, the phones at Enforcer Headquarters had been ringing off the wall with calls from concerned Katizens demanding to know what the enforcers were going to do about this threat.

Dena sighed not for the first time as she walked toward the Deputy Mayor's office at city hall. Mayor Manx had called her office demanding she report to his office first thing in the morning. She had delayed that visit as long as she could but now here she was making her way to Calico Briggs' office not wanting to see Manx yet.

She and Briggs might not always get along due to Callie's friendship with the SWAT Kats but she was a trustworthy Kat with a level head on her shoulders. She was not given to panicking so she was the best choice to reveal her secret to.

With her illusion spell firmly in place, Dena knocked on the Deputy Mayor's office door. A soft 'come in' was heard from within. Dena opened the door and stepped through. Callie looked up from her desk work to see Commander Feral standing before her. She frowned and stood up, smoothing her dress as she did so.

"It's about time, Commander. Mayor Manx has been getting numerous calls about this matter since he came in this morning." She said in irritation. The morning and into the afternoon had been chaotic at best.

"No need to be snappy, Ms. Briggs. I'm here now, however, I need to speak with you first before we go in to see Manx." Feral said, ignoring Briggs' huff of frustration.

Frowning, Callie sighed and asked, "Alright, what do you need to speak to me about?"

Feral sighed, "Would you sit down? This will be quite a shock."

Still frowning, Callie went to her desk and sat down in her chair. She gave him a nod to go on.

Feral sighed and mumbled a few words under her breath causing her spell to fade away. Revealing her true form to Callie who could only gape in shock. Her mouth had dropped open and she was unable to say a word as she stared at the beautiful she-kat standing there.

'I can't be seeing this!' She thought in disbelief. Finally she blurted, ""What…?…How?"

"Hold on a little longer, Ms. Briggs. I have one more thing to do." Dena said in her lovely, husky voice. She walked closer to Callie and raised a finger to her forehead.

Callie stared at Dean a bit fearfully but stayed still as Dena's finger touched her. Callie gasped as she felt a liquid warmth pass through her head. She began to feel light-headed as Dena began to speak.

"Briggs, I need you to remember the day you were attacked by that fake Enforcer." Dena said in soft calm voice.

"O-okay." Callie said bringing up the memory.

"Tell me…what do you remember about that day?" Dena asked keeping her voice level.

"I remember the Enforcer coming in and attacking me."

"How did he attack you?"

"With a gun…no…a weird…energy he fired from ...but that can't be right." Callie said as the false and true memories began to mix, confusing her.

"Did he say anything?" Dena asked. She needed to keep Callie talking and remembering as the spell continued to work until all of Callie's true memories came back.

"Yes, he did. He…he said…he was an Iriomkat." Callie said her eyes widening as she jerked back away from Dena, "You're…you're an Iriomkat too!"

"Yes, I am. But I not here to hurt you." Dena said moving back to give Callie some breathing space.

"Then why did you…?"

"I was ordered by my Elders to reveal myself. Since Katkind now knows about us, we wish to try and see if Kats and Iriomkats could try to live together in these modern times." Dena explained quietly.

"And with you being the Chief Enforcer, you would have the trust of the Katizens." Callie said thoughtfully.

"For now." Dena said, knowing what was coming next.

"What about the one that attacked me? Is he the one that's been killing Kats?" Callie asked shrewdly.

"Yes, he is. But he's a rogue and we've been hunting him but I must ask you to put that on hold for now. We need to speak with Manx." Dena requested.

Callie frowned a moment but nodded, "You're right, come on. Let's get this over with."

Dena nodded as Callie stood up and walked by her. Dena could see Callie's body stiffen as she passed by the Iriomkat. She couldn't blame Briggs for being on guard so she made sure to stay a few feet away from her.

Callie knocked on Manx's door then opened it. "Mayor Manx, Commander Feral is here." She announced.

"It's about time." Manx said as he looked up but saw only Briggs and a dark fur she-kat wearing the Commander's uniform. "What is this? Where is Feral?" He demanded.

"Right here, Mayor Manx." Callie said pointing at Dena.

"W-w-what?" Manx said not understanding

"Let me show what Briggs means, Mayor Manx." Dena said recasting her spell.

Manx sat there flabbergasted at seeing the she-kat change to that of the male Feral he knew. He looked at Feral then at Callie then back at Feral.

"But how? Feral, you're a she-kat? Kat's alive, what's going on?" Manx asked unsure how to take this.

"Mayor Manx, Commander Feral is an Iriomkat. She's been asked by her people to reveal herself to Katkind. It is hoped that since she is the Chief Enforcer, Kats will listen to her as she makes an appeal from her people to the Katizen's of this city for peace between our two species." Callie said quickly taking control.

"Yes, well…what are the demands your people wish to make?" Manx asked cautiously.

"None, sir, only that Katkind give us a chance. That's all we ask." Dena said carefully.

"Seems a simple enough request but there's so much hysteria in the city right now, I'm not sure your request will be heard." Manx said worriedly.

"We will have to stand by her as she makes her plea, Mayor...show a united front during this very important press conference. Hopefully, we can get people to listen to their plea for peace." Callie suggested.

"Well...that could work. Was there anything else?" He asked, still worried.

"No sir, that's all." Feral said politely.

"Very well, Callie. I'll let you make the arrangements but I want you to make sure security on this is very tight. We don't want any incidents to mar the occasion. There's enough uneasiness as it is in the city right now." Manx ordered.

"Yes, I understand. I'll have my enforcers surround the conference and provide crowd control." Feral responded.

"Since we need to do this as quickly as possible, how about we set the press conference for eleven-thirty in the morning. Is that alright Mayor?" Callie said briskly, planning what needed to be done in her mind.

"Sounds okay with me, Callie." Manx said checking his calendar.

"What about you, Commander? Will that give you enough time to get your forces in place?" She turned to Dena.

"Yes, it won't be a problem, Ms. Briggs. Thank you! I'll get right on it." Feral said with a brisk nod of his head.

"Commander, how should you be addressed tomorrow?" Callie asked.

"I'm still Commander Feral no matter what form I'm in Ms. Briggs." Dena said quietly. "My personal name is no ones business but my own."

"Alright, I certainly can understand that." Callie said nodding. She could see the Commander would be glad to get this over with as quickly as possible. She certainly didn't envy her all the attention that was going to come down on her. It would be far worse than anything she'd endured as Chief Enforcer.

"If you'll excuse me, I'd better returned to my office and get this plan started." Feral said briefly. Callie and the Mayor nodded. Feral turned and left the office for his own.

Dena breathed a sigh of relief that this part of it was done and was easier than she'd hoped. Ms. Briggs and Mayor Manx were nervous but not panicky. She only hoped the press conference would have the same effect on the population. One could hope. She let that concern go for now as she concentrated on what she needed to do to plan the security of the conference.

Callie returned to her office and began making calls to all the major news agencies around the city. After more than a couple of hours on the phone, Callie sat back in her seat and sighed, brushing her hair back with her paw.

She still had trouble believing Feral was an Iriomkat and, of all things, a female. She shook her head at that. She couldn't believe she'd never once guessed it. Feral's disguise was just too good. She had a thought and reached down for her purse. Searching for a moment, she found what she was looking for and pressed the button on the special communicator in her palm.

"SWAT Kats, come in." Callie called.

"Yes, Ms. Briggs?" Came the familiar voice of Razor.

"Razor, I've got some news about Feral that you're not going to believe." She began.

"What kind of news?" He asked, curious though he suspected he knew.

"Commander Feral is an Iriomkat female. She just revealed that to me and Mayor Manx. She said it was ordered by her Elders as a way to get Kats and her kind to live together in peace." Callie explained. She was surprised when all she heard was silence after that shocking news.

"Razor?"

"…Sorry, Ms. Briggs, but T-Bone and I already knew about that." Razor said apologetically.

"When did that happen?" Callie asked feeling somewhat hurt.

"It was during the Pastmaster's attack when T-Bone was locked in the vault with her. For me it was when you were attacked by that fake Enforcer and her disguise was zapped by that guy. Feral made us swear not to tell anyone what she really was to protect her people." Razor explained

"Well her secret won't be a secret anymore. She's going to reveal herself at tomorrow's press conference." Callie said, still a little hurt that she'd not been let in on the secret but understanding now why Feral had felt it necessary.

"When will that be?" Razor asked.

"At eleven thirty in the morning at city hall in the press conference room on the top floor near the Mayor's office." She told him. "It would relieve my mind if you guys would be there, out of sight of course, but alert to any trouble. Feral will have a cordon set up as well but I'd feel better having you guys as back up."

"We'll be there." Razor said assured her, knowing T-Bone needed to be there anyway for Dena and planning on going to city hall that night to set up special spy cameras.

"Thanks, I appreciate it." Callie said in relief. "Tell T-Bone I said, 'Hi'"

"You're welcome and I will." Razor said before clicking off.

She sighed and put her communicator away. She still had some work to get done before tomorrow.

At eleven thirty in the morning all the news crews of Megakat City had descended on city hall to hear the important news Briggs had warned them was to be given out. The room was packed and getting a bit warm as well as really noisy. Of course, Ann Gora had the prime spot at the front. Kats Eye News always managed to be at the forefront of any major news event.

Mayor Manx stepped up to the podium, raising his palms to quiet everyone. When it was quiet enough, he began, "Thank you all for coming. I called this press conference for a very important matter."

As Mayor Manx began to talk, hidden in the clock tower above their heads, sat the SWAT Kats staring at a closed circuit TV screen. The night before, Razor and he had set up a special spy camera in the conference room. Now they had a birds eye view as well as sound on what was going on. They had gotten there long before the workers arrived at the building for their days work, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.

T-Bone never took his eyes off the screen, his arms were crossed tightly over his chest as he watched. Beside him Razor also watched but he would occasionally steal a look at his partner.

"You okay about this, T-Bone?" Razor asked quietly.

T-Bone sighed and rubbed his eyes a moment. "No I'm not. I'm worried about her Razor. If anything happens to Dena…I…" His voice tightened and he wasn't able to finish his words.

"It'll be alright." Razor said trying to offer some reassurance.

T-Bone look at Razor uneasily. "I hope so." He said tensely.

With nothing more to say they returned their attention to the monitor just as Manx gestured for Feral to come up to the podium and he stepped down but stood close along with Callie.

"As Mayor Manx said Iriomkats are real and they do live among you. But all they wish is a chance to live in peace." Feral said.

"And how do you know this, Commander Feral?" Ann jumped in to ask first.

"Because I'm an Iriomkat" Feral said, letting her illusion drop. The room went wild as the Commander was revealed as female.


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve **

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

It was moving past midnight as Bruce Anwar tried to finish up his work on his laptop. He was a leading expert in the genetic sciences. It once was the focus of his life until he met his mate, Lesley Weller.

It had been three years ago when he met the pretty kindergarten teacher during a coffee run. He accidentally brushed against her and felt the shock of attraction that caused him to pause in his tracks to just look at her. That had been the beginning of a whirlwind courtship.

Now he was happily mated to her with two year old toddlers. He spent as much time as he could with his family before sequestering himself in his study to work. As he paused in his typing to stretch tight muscles from sitting for a long time, he heard his study door open with a soft squeak.

Bruce's grey eyes looked up to see his two year old son, Duncan standing there with a troubled look on his small face. Duncan was tan furred like his father with intense blue eyes from his mother. His twin, Corbin, had his mother's white fur and father's grey eyes.

"Hey, sport. What are you doing up so late?" Bruce asked getting up from his chair.

"Bad dream." Duncan said rubbing his eyes.

"Ahh, it's okay, let's get you some warm milk to help you sleep then its back to bed, okay?" Bruce said gently, picking his son up.

"Okay." Duncan said with a sigh, leaning his head on his father's shoulder.

Bruce carried his son down the hallway to the stairs and made his way to the kitchen. He found his mate, Lesley, sitting at the kitchen table staring into space with a cup of coffee that had gone cold.

"Hon?" Bruce asked in concern.

Lesley jerked a little then looked up. "Oh, Bruce, I'm sorry. I thought Duncan was asleep." Lesley said, getting up to take her son.

"Apparently he had a bad dream. I told him I'd make him some warm milk and put him to bed." He said warmly as he handed Duncan off to his mother.

Lesley nodded as she rubbed her son's back to soothe him. Bruce took milk from the refrigerator, poured some into a glass then placed it in the microwave for a few seconds to heat up. It beeped when it was done and Bruce took it out then poured it into a sippy cup for his son.

He moved to his wife's side and handed Duncan the milk. They waited patiently as their son drank the milk slowly. Finished, he handed it back to his father and sighed as he leaned more heavily against his mother's shoulder. Very quickly, he fell asleep.

"I'll take him back to bed, dear." Lesley said quietly, leaning forward to give her mate a kiss then making her way out of the room for the stairs.

Though Lesley was trying to keep her emotions under control, Bruce could feel his mate's anxiety, distress and fright through their bond. He knew why she felt that way…all Iriomkats felt that way ever since Dena Feral revealed herself to Katkind per the Elder's command.

Bruce was making a fresh pot of coffee when she came back into the kitchen. She sat down at the kitchen table and brought up her paws to her face. Bruce came over and rubbed her shoulders to try and soothe her.

"Everything will be alright. It just takes some time for everyone to come around, Hon." Bruce said in a soothing tone.

"How can you be so sure? What if something happens? I can't lose you or our kittens." Lesley said worriedly.

Bruce sighed and brought up a chair to sit next to her, "Nothing will happen. I promise."

"But…"

"No buts, I know you think that many kats would rather not have anything to do with us and its true there will be some suspicion and fear for awhile but eventually they will come to realize we mean them no harm and we'll be able to live in peace." He reassured her.

Lesley nodded feeling more relaxed and hopeful at her mate's positive words. She had been terribly worried about her Iriomkat mate and mixed kittens against the anger of the pure Iriomkats.

She had felt the brunt of the prejudice early in their marriage when she had informed her parents about Bruce. At first they had been ecstatic to learn their daughter had found a mate but when they learned he was an Iriomkat their joy turned to horror and fear and they tried to separate the two.

Lesley had to be firm with them saying she would never leave him and besides she and Bruce were already bonded. Her parents reacted badly, telling her to leave and never come back. She had been shocked by their behavior.

Bruce did his best to ease her hurt and anger. Lesley managed to still keep in contact with her parents, that is until the twin's birth. Her parents made it clear they wanted nothing to do with her, Bruce or their grand kittens. Lesley was heartbroken but, over time, she had grown to accept her parents would never warm up to her mate, that is, until the sudden need to reveal Iriomkat's existence to Katkind happened. Now all her old fears had returned.

As they sat there quietly, each in their own thoughts, their peace was interrupted by the sound of breaking glass exploding into the house. It seemed to have come from the sliding glass door in the living room that faced the backyard.

"Lesley, the kittens!" Bruce snapped, jumping from his chair and heading for the living area. He had felt the prickle of energy in the air and realized who had blasted the door.

Lesley didn't need to be told twice as she raced up the stairs to her kitten's room.

Bruce knew about the rogue and suspected he was getting a visit from the unknown male but what he hadn't expected was the sight of a familiar face. Zachary stood there with a female and male Iriomkat.

"Zachary? What the hell are you doing?!" Bruce said in shocked anger. He tensed staring at the pair with Zachary. He'd expected trouble from the pure Iriomkats but never from this tom. He was one of their most respected hunters.

"Bruce, I want to do this peacefully and without any trouble." Zachary said in flat voice.

Bruce grimaced unhappily as he asked, "Does this have to do with the rogue? Are you working for him now?"

"Sounds like you already know. Being a seer must help." Zachary said with a snort of derision.

"Unfortunately, I do. Zachary, you need to let this go. Their fate was decided long ago. Nothing you do now will change it." Bruce said seriously.

"Oh but it can be changed…with your family spell." Zachary said harshly.

"That spell was a mistake! It's use is forbidden! You know that!" Bruce exclaimed, trying to make Zachary see reason.

"I don't care! You will cast the spell!" The angry hunter shouted furiously.

"And if I don't?" Bruce asked carefully.

He watched as Zachary's eyes narrowed and a displeased look crossed his face. Behind him, the other two Iriomkats shared a look of cold pleasure.

Suddenly screams drifted down from upstairs. On the heels of that terrifying sound, Bruce felt a sharp pain in his mind. "Lesley!" He cried out as a shockwave of pain reached him from his mate sending him to his knees.

"S-stop!" Bruce pleaded, gasping from the agony coming through his bond.

"If you don't want your mate and kittens hurt, you'll do as I say." Zachary hissed coldly.

"Y-y-you wouldn't!" Bruce gasped in horror, looking up at Zachary.

"Not me, but my friends here would. They really don't like Kats or half breeds well." Zachary said cooly, causing Bruce to look at the pair in question. The looks on their faces told him the hunter was deadly serious.

"Okay, I'll do it. Just leave my family alone." Bruce said in defeat.

"Oh no, I'm afraid we can't do that. We need them as insurance that you'll keep your promise and that you'll stay in line." Zachary said, smiling cruelly.

_Later that morning...  
_  
Ms. Briggs woke early the day after the fateful new conference. She prayed things would stay calm both in the city and with Dena at Enforcer Headquarters. She really didn't envy Feral the problems she was sure to encounter on her first day as her real self.

As Callie prepared for work, she remembered all too well the craziness of the new conference. The news crews were relentless with their questions to Dena Feral and eager for information about the Iriomkats hidden lives among Katkind.

It had taken hours and when it was finally over, Dena looked exhausted but relieved. Callie had made her stay for a short while longer so they could talk privately. It felt strange speaking to a female when she had been so used to a male all this time. Dena finally said farewell and returned to work to deal with the shockwave that would hit her own enforcers.

When Callie entered her office less than an hour later, she was unhappy to learn from her secretary that a special meeting of the city council had been called and had begun some five minutes earlier. Since she hadn't been notified of a special meeting, she was immediately suspicious of what could be going on. Thanking her secretary, she made for the Mayor's door and burst into the room.

Narrowing her eyes, she stared around the table at the city council members. Turning toward the Mayor as she approached the table, she demanded angrily, " What is going on Mayor Manx and why wasn't I told about this meeting?"

"Ah, good morning, Callie. Uh...we just needed to have a small meeting about recent events." Manx said rather nervously.

"Oh? Then why wasn't I called in as well?" Callie said coldly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"It was felt you were too close to the problem, Callie." Manx said, not able to look at his deputy.

"What?" She blurted, glaring around the table.

"Ms. Briggs, it was felt you were too close to this Iriomkat problem to be objective." Mrs. Roday, City Treasurer, stated sternly.

"Iriomkat problem?" Callie echoed in confusion.

"Yes, we must deal with them at once." Mrs. Roday said firmly. The rest of the council solemnly nodded their heads in agreement.

"Deal with them? Now hold on a minute! They've done nothing wrong! All they've asked is a chance to continue living peacefully among us. They've been here the whole time and there's never been a problem. The only difference is we now know about them. It's up to us to learn to accept them among us. You've no right to decide they are a menace just because they are different! We deal with the different and the odd everyday of our lives!" Callie stormed at them, incensed by their attitude.

"Not a menace? Deputy Mayor Briggs may I remind you that you were attacked by one of these creatures?!" Another member of the council said sharply.

"That was a rogue! We have Kats that break the law too, why shouldn't they have them too? They are hunting him now. That is not..." Callie tried to allay their fears but was cut off by the sudden entry of her secretary who ran into the room.

"I'm sorry, your honors, but there's been a report of Dr. Viper being spotted at Megakat University." She said urgently.

"What? Why would Viper attack a University?" Callie asked, shaking her head in confusion.

"I don't know ma'am but the enforcers are on their way to the site." Her secretary told her.

"Perhaps you'd better check it out, Callie." The Mayor suggested.

With a huff of dismay, Callie turned on her heel and hurried out of the Mayor's office. She would have to deal with the problem of the council later. She made for her own office, snatched her purse and quickly left the building.

_Some hours earlier..._

When Dena woke that morning, she could tell it was going to be a bad day. She'd begun to feel a hot and needy ache throughout her body and recognized the symptoms. She cursed mentally at the rotten timing. Her heat cycle was mild at the moment but as the day moved on, it would increase in intensity until she was forced to mate with T-Bone and complete their bonding.

Growling in irritation, Dena got out of bed and readied herself for work. Before putting her clothes on, she sprayed a masking spray over her body. It worked to hide her scent and revealing her sex when she was pretending to be male. Unfortunately, it would have no effect on her mate. He would already be feeling her sexual need through their bond. There was no help for that except to try and avoid her mate until it ended.

Dressed and ready to go, Dena gathered up her wallet, keys, and weapon then slipped her coat on. Minutes later she was driving to Enforcer Headquarters. Trying to ease the shock of her revelation, she chose to use her male appearance when she went to work.

She was a little nervous about the reception she would get when she walked into her building. Would her enforcers accept her or would there be conflicts? She would just have to handle things as they came up and hope for the best.

As she drove her mind went back to the aftermath of the news conference. When she had finally been able to break free from Ann Gora and Ms. Briggs, she was going to go back to her office. But T-Bone had other ideas. He slipped down from the clock tower where he and Razor had been watching and waited, hidden behind a dumpster not far from where her hummer was parked, for her to appear.

He stepped out to confront her. "Where are you going now?" He asked softly, putting an arm around her.

"I thought I'd go back to the office and get my desk cleared of backed up work." She said with a sigh.

T-Bone shook his head. "No, we need to spend some time together and there's nothing that important that it can't wait until morning. I'll meet you back at your apartment." He told her then left not allowing her to object.

Sighing again and shaking her head at her mate's rather dominant behavior, Dena climbed into her car and left for home.

When she got home it was late afternoon and they decided to have an early dinner. They relaxed in her living room and began talking about this and that. T-Bone learned to his amazement, that Dena loved to read all types of books and had a passion for drawing and photography. She showed him work she had done in junior and high schools.

Though he certainly was no expert, he was stunned by her work. Her use of colors and shadowing was incredible. Her attention to detail brought her drawings to life and were extraordinary. As for her photography work, he could actually feel the emotions expressed by the images she'd taken. He had to admit, she was very talented and that pleased him a lot and he didn't hesitate to tell her that.

Dena brushed it off but inwardly was pleased he liked her work so much. It made her feel warm inside that he thought so highly of her. She turned the conversation to focus on him. She learned he was a big fan of comic books, loved junk food of all kinds, and was absolutely mad about Scardey-Kat Cartoons.

She found that quite funny that the tough and cocky SWAT Kat was such a big softie. She had to laugh when she'd heard about the cartoons. She got the feeling he enjoyed hearing her laugh by the expression on his face. Turning away from him and blushing she continued to ply him with questions. She wasn't surprised to learn he loved to fly anything with wings but especially the Turbokat and that he was an exceptional mechanic.

It was an informative and enjoyable evening. They made love before he left just after midnight for his home.

Her mind was brought back to the present as she reached her destination. She set the security on her vehicle and went up to the main doors of her building. She briskly walked through, ignoring the looks she got as she crossed the lobby for the elevators. She stepped out of the elevator and strode down the short hall to her office. Opening her door, she was unhappy to see Steele sitting at her desk.

Growling her displeasure, she snapped, "What are you doing here?" She demanded as she pulled her coat off and hung it up.

Steele gave a squeak of surprise and jumped out of his superior's chair. "Commander Feral! Uh...uhmm...I thought you were taking the day off after the uproar from yesterday." He said shakily.

Frowning at him, she moved to her desk, glaring at him. Steele wisely scrambled off the pedestal and waited before her desk. She climbed up and sat down. "You know very well that I don't take time off, now get out!" She barked at him.

Steele jerked in fear and raced out of the office before Dena could blink. 'Well, I don't think I've ever seen him move that fast before.' She snorted mentally then got to work on the mess on her desk.

A short time later, her Sergeant came into her office and stopped before her desk. He looked uncomfortable. "Yes?" Dena asked gruffly.

"Sir, er…ma'am...uh...many of your officers are concerned about how to address you now that it's known you're really female. Also, they want to know if things will change at all due to you being an Iriomkat." The Sergeant said quietly.

"I'll be putting out a notice answering those questions but I'm sure once you tell some of the squadron officers it will spread like gossip does...the speed of sound." She said at a mild attempt at humor.

She' been successful because the Sergeant smiled a little at that observation. "That's certainly true sir...uh...ma'am." He said.

"First thing...it's still sir. For the sake of everyone's sanity and helping them ease into me being female, I will retain my male image. It will prevent any serious problems with the undeniable female prejudice that still reigns here. And second, nothing...I repeat nothing will change on how I run things. No one should be concerned about dealing with me as they had before. And lastly, Iriomkats are to be treated exactly the same as Kats. No preferential treatment. Understand?" She said seriously.

"Yes sir!" The Sergeant said, obvious relief in his stance.

"Good. Carry on then. I promise to get that notice out today. Dismissed." She said.

"Sir!" The Sergeant said briskly then turned and left to alleviate everyone's concerns. The Commander was right, he only had to tell a few officers before the information would be on everyone's lips down to the basement cell block area in a matter of hours.

Dena sighed knowing despite her orders, there would still be uneasiness between Iriomkats and Katkind. Only time would make things settle down. She didn't know if it was wise to tell the Katizens that Iriomkats were faced with double jeopardy if caught committing a crime. Judged first by Kat law then by the Council of Elders. She just didn't know if that knowledge would be helpful or make things worse.

She sincerely hoped her enforcers would accept the few changes around her without too much strife. Of course, it didn't help matters that she was mated to the notorious SWAT Kat, T-Bone. That would definitely have to remain a secret.

"Kat's Alive! What a mess. I can't really lean on them or arrest them but I can't show I'm letting them off the hook. What am I going to do about them?" She muttered aloud. She shook her head. 'I'm not going to worry about it now. I'll need to talk to the guys and lay down some ground rules about their behavior then just play it by ear' She decided.

Thinking about T-Bone had been a mistake. She'd succeeded in forgetting about her problem but now the symptoms of her heat was making themselves felt more strongly. She shifted uncomfortably and adjusted her clothing to see if it give her some ease. Unfortunately, squirming in her seat caused her swollen sex to be rubbed. She gasped and muffled a moan with her arm.

That finished any concentration she might have mustered to return to her desk full of work. Growling unhappily, Dena put her finished work in her out basket and the more sensitive documents in a secured drawer, locking it. Getting up, she made for the door, pausing to pull on her coat.

No matter how much she really didn't want to do this now, she just couldn't fight it any longer. Dena planned on going home, contacting T-Bone and getting this over with. Just as she reached for her door handle, her Sergeant came bursting in, nearly running into her.

"Commander Feral, we've gotten a report that Viper's been spotted." Sergeant said hurridly.

"Where?" Dena asked.

"Megakat University."

She gaped at the Sergeant in surprise. "Kat's alive, what does he want from there?" She asked rhetorically.

"I don't know sir. It could be about the new project they are working on to try and resurrect ancient plants." The Sergeant suggested.

"Great, first dinosaurs now plants. Whose responded?" She asked as she and the Sergeant headed for the elevator.

"A mobile ground force is on it's way sir. Should be there in about five minutes." The Sergeant reported.

Dena nodded and pulled out her radio to summon a chopper squadron to prepare for takeoff. The Sergeant quickly suited up when they reached the flight line and acted as Dena's pilot. They were soon winging their way to the university.

_Earlier that morning...Megakat Salvage Yard... _

Dena had forgotten that she might know what was going on but her mate wouldn't be aware that the need thrumming through his body was her heat cycle. He was confused and irritable. Erotic dreams had haunted his early morning hours just before waking at his usual time.

'Crud! What the heck is going on? I've already mated with Dena, why would I be so hot and bothered now?' Chance wondered as threw his blankets off his sweaty body and got up to go to the bathroom.

Showering, he felt a little cooler, so quickly got dressed and went downstairs for breakfast. Jake was up, as usual, and sitting at the table eating some cereal. Chance headed for the fridge for some milk and made himself a bowl of cereal.

Jake quietly watched his best friend puttering around getting his food. Chance paused pouring milk in his bowl to growl and shift his clothes in apparent aggravation and discomfort. Frowning, Jake noted that his friend seemed to want to just rip his clothes off. This suspicion was enforced when he witnessed Chance shifting irritably in his chair as he tried to eat.

'Okay. Something's up!' Jake thought, deciding to address the issue. "Uhm, buddy..." He began before stopping instantly when Chance beared his fangs and growled at him. Jake froze.

Chance blinked in shock and shook himself. Setting his spoon down, he swallowed and looked at his friend in confused embarrassment. "Crud! I'm sorry Jake. I don't know what came over me." He said softly.

"It's alright but something is bothering you. Can you tell me if something has happened to you recently?" Jake asked carefully, making sure he made no threatening move, sitting still and keeping his paws on the table in sight.

"No, at least I don't think so." Chance said, frowning.

"Okay, let's try this then. What are you feeling right now?" Jake asked.

"Feeling?" Chance asked with a snort but could see Jake was serious so thought about what he was feeling though he felt silly doing it. "Uhh...well I feel like I'm hot all over, my groin aches, and my skin feels uncomfortable with my clothes rubbing over it." He said. "That sounds ridiculous when I say it out loud."

"Actually it doesn't." Jake said distractedly. His mind was putting together the pieces. To check his suspicions, Jake took a deep sniff of his partner's scent. The distinctive odor of a rutting male hit his nose hard. Now he was certain he knew what was wrong.

"Chance, I think…"Jake started to tell his partner before their alarm went off sending them flying for their hangar.

As they dressed quickly to leave, Jake noted Chance was still irritable and not really wanting to put other clothes on. Shaking his head, he changed and joined his partner aboard the Turbokat. In second, they were off and on their way to Megakat University.

Arriving at the university, T-Bone could see that Viper's plants were already taking over one of the buildings. The Enforcers were already engaged in battle with the mutant plants.

T-Bone became distracted looking for Dena rather than paying attention to his flying. 'Where is she?' He rumbled to himself.

"T-Bone watch out!" Razor shouted

T-Bone looked up to see a flying mutant plant coming at them. He dodged the oncoming plant just in time and Razor shot it out of the sky. T-Bone growled hostilely as he swung the jet around thinking to look for more of the creatures. Razor caught his attention.

"T-Bone, quick next to the vine infested building. We gotta find Viper before he can escape." Razor said tightly.

T-Bone grunted an acknowledgment and landed where Razor had indicated. Popping the canopy, they jumped down to the ground, looked around carefully, checked their glovatrix then headed for the entrance to the building.

T-Bone reached the door first. He opened it cautiously, peering through the crack first to check for any mutant plants blocking the way. It was clear. Pulling it the rest of the way open, he and Razor quickly ran in, taking the first hallway to their right.

They reached a stairwell leading down. So far they hadn't seen any more plants. They decided to go downstairs, search around then return to the main floor. T-Bone again led the way as they cautiously went down the stairs quickly.

Reaching the bottom floor, they looked down the hallway. Once more they found no plants. Razor frowned in confusion.

"This is strange. Ordinarily Viper's plants would be crawling all over the place." He said in concern.

"You're right! So where are they and where is Viper?" T-Bone asked to himself. He was trying to focus on the danger at hand but he was distracted by his need to find Dena.

"T-Bone, we need to stay focused. Something's not right about this. I know you're having trouble concentrating but I need you in the here and now or we're toast." Razor said tightly.

Shaking himself, T-Bone knew his partner was right and he sighed, "I know Razor. Don't worry about me, I'll be careful."

Razor nodded but was still concerned. "Okay, let's check everywhere before going back upstairs." He ordered.

They continued to head down the hallway, still not coming across anything at first. Suddenly a low rumbling sound was heard ahead, setting T-Bone and Razor on alert. Just as they were about to reach a corner where another corridor started, Dena came running. She was obviously running from something and she was alone.

Raising their glovatrix, they were ready when Dena raced past them and a group of mutant plants came barreling around after her.

T-Bone and Razor opened fire, destroying the leading plants and temporarily driving back the rest. They turned around and quickly ran back down the corridor for the stairs with the plants hot on their tails.

Reaching the stairs they raced up them and continued to race down the upper corridor for the doors. To their horror, more plants showed up in the previously empty hallway heading for them. They were effectively caught between the two groups. They fired a barrage of missiles and were able to decimate most of the plants ahead of them. There were a lot of doors in the hall and they made for one of the open ones before the rest of the plants could catch them. T-Bone had grabbed Dena by the waist and kept her close to him as they ran.

"There are too many!" Dena shouted firing at the plants trying to sneak up on them.

"We need to…" T-Bone started to shout when more mutant plants dropped through the ceiling tiles above them, cutting Dena and T-Bone from Razor.

"Razor!" T-Bone shouted worried for his best friend.

"T-Bone, get out of here!" Razor shouted shooting at some plants then ducking into a room near him and slamming the door in the face of the hoard heading for him.

T-Bone cursed but was reminded of Dena when she squeezed his paw. Hissing in concern, he looked around wildly and spotted another door just ahead of them. Firing at the plants to buy them some time the pair reached the door and opened it. They fell into the room and slammed the door behind them. T-Bone locked it and was relieved to find it was a rein-forced door with security lock.

The plants splatted and howled against it but couldn't get in. T-Bone sighed in relief and looked around the room. It seemed to be some kind of secure laboratory. There were no windows. 'Great, how are we going to get out of here?' He thought.

"Well that bought us some time," Dena sighed putting her weapon away and beginning to reach for her radio.

T-Bone was distracted from their dilemna by her bewitching scent which was strong in the closed room. Without thought, he was at her side and pressing her chest against the wall causing her to drop her radio. He buried his nose in her neck. Her scent made his head spin and drew a growl from his chest.

Now everything in him wanted to join with his mate. Nothing else mattered at this moment. Dena groaned hotly. She knew this wasn't the right time to do this and despite her desperate need, she tried to push her mate away from her.

"Ah…T-Bone... NO!" Dena cried out as T-Bone suddenly shoved her jacket off her shoulders then ripped her shirt open, popping the buttons and before Dena could stop him, he pulled her t-shirt up and over her head. Only her bra was left on top.

Dena cried out as T-Bone snapped her bra open then began to fondle her breasts roughly. She again tried to push back against him to make him move but T-Bone gathered her wrists with one paw and pulled them over her head then attacked her with his mouth and other paw, driving all sense from Dena's mind, still she tried to buck him off her.

"T-Bone…oh, stop! T-T-this…isn't….the time…or…p-p-place!" Dena said trying to gain control again even as her body screamed to just let it happen.

But T-Bone wasn't listening at all. He nipped, licked and kissed her neck and shoulder. Using his free paw he fondled her other breast then rolled the nipples between his fingers. He rolled his hips against her tail so that she could feel how aroused he was.

She moaned deeply as his hard member press against her, sending sparks of pleasure through her body. While still keeping his mate against the wall, he undid her belt then zipper then pulled her pants down. Using the toes of his bare foot he helped her toe off her long boots, one at a time. Once she was stripped, he released her paws then hurriedly rid himself, of his glovatrix, G-suit, shirt and boxers. Now free he press himself against her feeling her touch and arousal though their bond.

Dena could only groan and mew as her mate removed her underwear. Once the last piece of clothing were out of the way, T-Bone swiftly entered his mate from behind. He set a hard, wild pace. She tossed her head back mewing loudly as her mate took her roughly, thrusting hard and fast. Ripples of pleasure screamed through their bodies at a fever pitch until they fell over the edge, Dena screaming and T-Bone roaring.

Their bodies shook and shuddered from the violence of their mating. As they slowly came back to themselves, T-Bone slid slowly to the floor keeping Dena firmly connected to him. As they came to a seated position, Dena could feel T-Bone buried deep within her and still slightly hard.

The sensation was intense and Dena found herself tightening around him wanting more. He groaned at her renewed desire and began a slow rolling motion of is hips making her gasp and mew at the new sensations he caused.

"Dena…" T-Bone moaned, moving his hips faster.

"T-Bone…" Dena whimpered, pressing her head back against his shoulder as her pleasure spiraled upward.

As their pleasure reached its peak again, a strong feeling of warmth came over them. At that moment their minds reached out to each other. Now they could feel each other passions freely. Their pleasure was doubled as each felt the others response to what they were doing. It was too much and the glory of their joined pleasure pushed them over the edge and exploded in a blinding climax that caused them to pass out.

They were only out a few moments before T-Bone groggily woke and found himself slumped atop Dena who was splayed out in his lap. He realized, to his surprise, that he was still buried within Dena. It felt incredible. Added to that were the many new feelings he was trying to cope with.

Dena groaned and tried to sit up. T-Bone lifted himself up and leaned against the wall. He could feel her dealing with their new emotional bond too.

"Is it always going to be like that?" T-Bone asked, letting his body rest.

"No, it should be semi-normal now." Dena answered, loving the feeling of her mate body on top of hers.

"Semi-normal? Then what do you call this?" T-Bone asked, enjoying the feeling of having his mate in his arms.

"This…it's the mating heat. We're completely bonded to each other now. You should have some control the next time I go into heat." Dena said, groaning as the heat began to come back.

"Then what we just felt now, that was the complete bond?" T-Bone asked, feeling his mate becoming aroused again.

"Yes, but…" Dena started to say as she reluctantly pushed off her mate and staggered to her feet. "This will have to wait. We have things to do."

T-Bone nodded. Realizing he was able to think clearly again and was able to push the demands of his body back for now.

"Right! This will wait till later. Come on, the sooner we catch Viper the faster we can get back to this." T-Bone said, huskily.

Dena could only blush at T-Bone's words as they gathered up their clothes and quickly redressed. This may have been not such a nice day when it started but now that she was finally completely bonded to her mate, she realized she was happier than she'd been in a long time.

She grinned shyly at him as she dressed and he smirked knowingly as he felt her feelings through their bond. It was truly amazing. He could hardly wait to have her all to himself later tonight.


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen **

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

With the urgency of mating muted for now, T-Bone and Dena concentrated on finding Viper. T-Bone carefully opened the heavy door after they could hear no sound from the other side. Looking out into the corridor, he found no sign of Viper's plants. Opening the door the rest of the way, he gestured Dena it was safe. They both now stood in the empty hallway, looking around and deciding where to go next. Dena had retaken her male image so her enforcers and Viper would know her at a glance.

"Come on! I need to find Razor and make sure he's alright." T-Bone said, concerned for his best friend.

"Right behind you." Dena said, her male voice sounding strange to his ears.

The two carefully walked down the hallway to the room T-Bone had seen Razor escape into. Opening the door he looked quickly around but there was no sign of his partner. 'Where had he gone?' T-Bone wondered with a frown.

"T-Bone, look!" Dena said excitedly.

The sandy tom turned to look where his dark furred mate was pointing. In the ceiling was a vent whose covering had been removed. It was far too small for T-Bone but Razor could have gone through it easily. At least they knew how he'd gotten out of the room, but where was he now?

"Where is he?" T-Bone asked out loud.

"You do have a radio in your helmet don't you?" Dena asked with a snort of amusement at her mate's befuddlement.

"Um...yeah." T-Bone said, feeling like an idiot as he quickly tapped his helmet com. "Razor?"

"T-Bone! You alright, buddy?" Came the relieved voice of his partner.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Dena is too."

"What happen?! I've been trying to reach you for the past hour!"

T-Bone could only blush at that. He had been way too busy being intimate with his mate when Razor had tried to reach him. He glanced at Dena and saw she was blushing too, her ears twitching, a sign she had heard what Razor had said.

"Sorry! I...I'm...I was...uhm...busy..." T-Bone stuttered lamely.

A pause and a brief "Oh." Let T-Bone know his partner had guessed what the tom had been up to and his voice held an embarrassed note in it.

Before it could get too uncomfortable, T-Bone changed the subject. "Where's Viper?" He asked.

"In the west wing. He's trying to steal the plans for the Resurrection Project." Razor answered

"Resurrection Project?" T-Bone asked, not sure if he heard Razor correctly.

"The project is to try to grow plants from ancient seeds from the distant past. Stupid, huh?" Dena snorted in amusement.

"Very." T-Bone said in agreement. "Obviously we have to stop him. Got any idea how?"

"Best way is to cause a distraction large enough to pull him away from the lab then we can get a drop on him." Razor said. T-Bone relayed that to Dena and wasn't happy with her answer.

"Well, I can provide the distraction with my enforcers. Once he's busy with us, you two can take him out, making it easier for me to arrest him." She said, while privately surprised at herself at her willingness to work with them. 'It not as if I have any other choices right now, do I?' She thought ruefully.

T-Bone gave her a quick worried look. "You sure? What if..." He started to object.

"I've been doing this for quite a few years, believe or not. Don't worry, I'll be alright." Dena soothed her mate while snorting privately about over protective males.

T-Bone caught her patient amusement over their bond and kicked himself for forgetting she was quite capable unlike a she-kat. After all, she had been Chief Enforcer far longer than he had been an enforcer himself and being a powerful Iriomkat on top of that. He grimaced, it had to be his very male need to protect his mate for him to feel the way he did. He would have to work on that or he'd be pissing his mate off constantly whenever she threw herself into danger.

With some reluctance, T-Bone told Razor what Dena planned to do.

"You okay with that, buddy? I know you mustn't like the idea." Razor asked his friend.

"No! But that's my problem not hers. I'll respect her wishes and just let her do what she has to do." T-Bone said in resignation.

"Okay, then meet me at the entrance to the west wing. We'll go from there." Razor said briskly.  
"Roger!" T-Bone said, cutting the connection. He turned to Dena, "He and I will meet at the west wing entrance then wait until you cause your distraction then go in and tag Viper."

She grimaced, not happy about him facing down Viper but said nothing. Time later for discussing the subject of taking risks like he did.

They quickly took off in two different directions. Dena headed for an outside exit where she could summon her enforcers by radio. She gathered them together and made for the west wing at a run.

Meanwhile, T-Bone met up with his partner. Razor had already carefully cased the area and found a spot where they could hide until the enforcers rousted the plants and Viper from the lab down the hall from them.

Using his partner's shoulders, Razor shoved a ceiling panel aside and leaped inside. He helped his partner join him then they replaced the panel, leaving a small space to see through and waited.

The enforcers with Dena in the lead, charged nosily down the corridor. In the lab, Viper was trying to download printed copies of the project at one of the many computers along on wall. His hissed when he heard the enforcers coming his way.

"Keep them busssy!" He hissed at his plant army. A mushroom monster and various flying plantimals headed out the door and right for the enforcers. The battle was just past where the SWAT Kats were hiding.

They dropped down from the ceiling then charged back the way the plants had come. Viper was still at the computer when they burst into the lab. T-Bone raised his glovetrix and sent a net missile over the lizard Kat while Razor fired a gas grenade at the same time. The dark purple gas distracted Viper so he didn't see the net till it was wrapping itself around him.

"No!" Viper hissed out struggling against the net.

"Don't bother Viper. That net is strong enough to hold ten kats." Razor said coming to stand by the mutant Kat..

"Crusssse you, SSSSWAT Katsss!" Viper hissed out again.

"Yeah, Yeah." T-Bone said helping Razor drag Viper out.

Meanwhile in the corridor, Dena's enforcers were decimating the plants while she impressed them all by taking out the mushroom monster with an energy ball when her laser didn't work. She was giving orders for cleanup with the SWAT Kats walked up dragging an furious Viper.

Without a word to them, she gestured for a pair of officers to take Viper into custody. While the commotion was going on, T-Bone tapped Dena on the shoulder signaling he wanted to speak with her. He stepped into an empty office while his partner disappeared outside.

Looking around her, Dena ensured no one was paying attention to her before stepping into the same room.

"Is something wrong? Did you get hurt?" Dena asked using their bond to see if her mate had been injured during his fight.

"Nah! We surprised Viper and took him without a fight. I just wanted to be sure you'd go home as soon as Viper and your paperwork was wrapped up." He said softly, pressing his body against hers.

"I will but it'll be a few hours." Dena warned him.

"Doesn't matter. I'll get dinner for us and be waiting." He said huskily.

"Hmmm, sounds perfect. See you later." She purred, nuzzling him before leaving him to return to her troops.

He waited till the enforcers were gone from the corridor before slipping out of the building and joining his partner in the Turbokat. In minutes they were on their way home.

The next morning dawned, bright and sunny. The attack by Viper on the university was nearly forgotten by the populace as they rose to greet another day. In a neat apartment, a doe colored she-kat with brown hair that had two white streaks in the front, awakened earlier than normal.

Abrielle Anwar had promised her brother, Bruce, that she would kitten sit her nephews today. Bruce and Lesley had needed some time together, alone.

Quickly getting up, she showered and ate breakfast. Less than an hour later, she was stepping out of her apartment and heading for her car in the parking lot. As she pulled out into traffic and headed for her brother's place, she began to feel a ripple of foreboding sweep over her. A cold chill chased down her spine and her stomach was clenching with tension.

Unfortunately, Abrielle knew this feeling well. She might not be the seer her brother was, but her sixth sense was strong enough to let her know she was heading into a bad situation. The feeling grew stronger and stronger the closer she got to her brother's home.

By the time she parked before his house, she knew something bad had happened here. She sat in her car and stared at her brother's front door for several minutes.

There were times in her life she wished her feelings were wrong, just this once she wanted it to be mistaken. Swallowing her fear and trepidation, she climbed out of her car and headed up the walkway to the front door. Reaching out for the door she was taken aback to see the door was opened slightly.

Biting her lower lip again, she reached out to the door handle, gripping it tight. Instantly, emotions that were not hers swept over her. The feelings ranged from anger to fear. Gradually images began to form in her mind's eye.

The events of the night before began to replay in her head like a movie. She watched in growing horror at what had transpired in the house. She saw the glass breaking in the living area that sent Bruce to his feet in the kitchen where he had been sitting with his wife, Lesley. She saw him gesture Lesley to run upstairs to their kittens. Her sister-in-law raced up the stairs out of sight just as Arielle saw Zachary come into the kitchen with two others.

She watched in disbelief as her brother and Zachary traded words. Her attention was distracted by a shadowy figure slipping past in the corner of her eye. She directed her vision to focus on this figure and saw it was a male Iriomkat heading up the stairs.

Loud voices raised in anger impinged on her 'mental ears' dragging her attention back to Zachary and Bruce. They were arguing about something from the angry look on Zachary's face which changed to a look of displeasure due to something her brother had said. The two other males looked on with cold pleasure and anticipation. Her brother suddenly cried out in pain and she knew what had been done to him.

"Don't do this." Abrielle whispered aloud, feeling helpless as she continued to watch the nightmare play itself out. She felt anguish when she witnessed her brother submit to whatever it was Zachary and the others wanted. Not able to take anymore, she removed her paw from the door handle.

Clenching her paws, she stumbled back down the sidewalk and made for her car. 'I've got to warn the Elders. I just can't believe Zachary would betray us like this. How could he be so willing to side with the rogue?' She thought anxiously as she started her car and tore away fast.

It was moving toward noon and in a warehouse located on the docks, a family of four huddled in fear. They had been separated, with the father in one cage and the mother and two kittens in another. The room was huge with rays of sunlight coming through windows located high in the ceiling. The warehouse was filled with crates and their cages were hidden behind a wall of them.

Bruce watched as his wife, Lesley tried to comfort their two sons who were crying softly. His need to protect his family was thwarted by their separation and it made him angry and afraid.

They were all hungry and thirsty by the time they heard footsteps heading their way. Bruce was immediately on guard getting up from the spot in the back of the cage where he had been sitting, to the bars of his cage. Lesley quickly gathered their kittens in her arms and moved to the rear of her cage.

Moments later, a large stranger with gold eyes and Zachary came around a huge stack of crates and walked up to Bruce's cage. The captive Iriomkat gripped the bars of his cage hard enough to make his knuckles white.

"Bruce Anwar, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm sorry we couldn't meet under better circumstances." Demon said pleasantly.

"So, you're the rogue." Bruce said tightly, staring at the huge male. "What do you want from me?" He said, glaring threateningly at Demon.

"To the point, I see. Very well…. Zachary and I need your help in performing the spell to break the soul bond of my sister." Demon said promptly.

Bruce stared appalled at Demon for a moment before turning his attention to Zachary. "You know I can't do that...the spell is forbidden and with good reason." He said tightly.

"I don't care what the reason is! You will performed the spell to free my sister." Demon snarled, dragging Bruce's attention back to him. His eyes narrowed coldly as he added, "That's if you want your half breed family to live."

Bruce's eyes widened as Demon turned and walked over to where the tom's kittens and mate were. He raised a paw and gathered pure electrical energy in his palm. The kittens cried out in terror. Lesley did also but bravely pulled her kittens close and turned her back to the threat, using her body as a shield.

"No! Don't hurt them!" Bruce shouted his plea. He shot out a paw beseechingly to Zachary, "Stop him, please! Don't let him hurt them!" He was shocked when Zachary just stared at him coldly.

"It's your choice, Anwar! Perform the spell or lose your family! Which one will it be?!" Demon demanded still holding the ball of energy in his palm.

"Alright, I'll do it! I'll do it! Just don't hurt them!" Bruce moaned in despair.

Demon absorbed the energy and lowered his paw, a look of triumph on his face. "Good. Now tell us what you need in order to cast the spell." Demon said briskly.

While Anwar was being threatened, at Club Imrie Dena was speaking with Rick. Serena suggested she get with him to discuss ways to find and capture the rogue. Unfortunately, she was finding him resistant to a suggestion she'd just made about having outside help with their search.

"You want me to work with who?!" Rick asked, resentment plain in his voice.

"It's only until we capture the rogue. They are not that difficult to work with and we need all the help we can get. The rogue is causing far too much disruption already and must be stopped. So please just bear with it till it's over." Dena urged him, trying to get him to see past his annoyance to the bigger picture.

"Look, Dena. I don't mind helping you when even you need it but them…" Rick said, his eyes flashing with distrust.

"I know you and Zachary don't exactly like them but that shouldn't matter when all of Iriomkat and Katkind are in danger. Your problems with them have no bearing on the disaster that's facing us now." Dena said more firmly.

Rick stared at her intently then sighed. She was right, he realized, personal problems had no place in this when they were in so much danger. "Fine, I'll do it. When do they arrive?" He asked in resignation.

"In a few…" Dena started to answer when the front door of the club slammed open. Halting in the doorway, gasping for breath, was a frightened Iriomkat female.

"Who is that?" Dena asked in surprise, getting up from her chair in a hurry and moving toward the female.

"Abrielle!" Rick called out the female's name as he rushed to the female's side, upset to see her in such distress.

"R-Ricky! Th-the rogue! He has my brother and….Z…"Abrielle gasped unable to finish until she could catch her breath.

Rick reached her side and wrapped a comforting arm around her waist. Abrielle leaned against him for support.

"Dena...a glass of water." Rick requested helping Abrielle to their table.

Dena quickly got the glass of water from behind the bar and hurried over to them, handing it to Abrielle. She sipped the water quickly as she tried to calm her breathing so she could relay what happened.

"Abrielle, you said the rogue has your brother. Why?" Rick asked bewildered.

"I don't know. But…" She started to say when the entry of someone else interrupted.

"Whoa, what's going here?" Asked a familiar gravely voice.

"T-Bone." Dena said, glad to see her mate.

T-Bone eyed the tense group at the table a moment, wondering what he and Razor had walked in on this time.

"It's the rogue. He's kidnapped Bruce Anwar, our genetics specialist. I don't understand why he would take one of his own species, it doesn't make sense." Dena told T-Bone, shaking her head in confusion.

"It wasn't just my brother but his mate and kittens he took as well. But there's something else…" Abrielle jumped in then paused again, unsure how they would take this next bit of news.

"Something else? What is it?" Dena demanded urgently, turning back to the female.

Abrielle bit her lip then took a deep breath and plunged on. "It's Zachary. He…he's helping the rogue." She said unhappily.

A stunned silence filled the room at Abrielle words. The looks on both Rick and Dena's faces were of shock, doubt and disbelief.

"No way!... Zachary…he would never...he…" Rick stuttered anxiously, trying to come up with a reason as to why his twin would do such a thing.

"It's true! He's helping the rogue. I saw it through my vision. He's doing it to gain something." Abrielle said with certainty.

T-Bone eyes widened at Abrielle's last comment then turned to stare at Dena who looked at him with the same sick suspicion.

He swallowed and his paws clenched into fists while a thrumming in his mind was the taut refrain, 'He won't take my mate...I won't let him...she's mine...Dena's mine!'


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

A heavy silence hung in the air as Rick and Dena absorbed the terrible news of Zachary's betrayal. T-Bone could feel his mate's anguish, disappointment, and sorrow through their bond. He felt bad for her and walked to her side to offer comfort. Back along their bond he sent soothing waves of love and understanding.

"Ohh T-Bone! I knew Zachary felt strongly about me but I never dreamed he would go this far because of me and......" She began to moan sorrowfully but her mate stopped her self- recriminations.

"Don't Dena, Zachary made his choice and now must live with the consequences. I know he's your best friend, but you are not at fault for what his jealousy has led him to do." He told her firmly.

"You're right, but it still hurts." Dena said softly, laying her head on his shoulder and wrapping her arms around him, trying to ease her anguished heart with her mate's comforting presence.

T-Bone sighed mentally at the feelings of abandonment that were welling up within Dena's mind, he needed to stop that train of thought quickly. He hugged her tighter and nuzzled her neck, making soothing noises and sending waves of reassurance through their bond. Slowly, the feelings of loss eased away replaced by her mate's love and strength.

Rick didn't see T-Bone's actions, to deep in his own anguish to notice. Zachary....his brother.... mentor......the one who had inspired him to be an Iriomkat hunter rather than an enforcer......had betrayed them all and for what? An unrequited love for Dena?

Rick flicked his eyes toward his other long time friend and blinked when he saw T-Bone comforting her. The tabby's attentions toward Dena were gentle and caring like that of a lover.

'No. Not a lover.....a mate. Ohh...brother....you wanted so badly what you couldn't have.' Rick thought sadly, looking away. Someone who had been standing quietly while this was going on, finally reminded them of his presence.

"So, what do we do now?" Razor asked, to break the pain of the moment and get them all back to the business at paw.

Reluctantly Dena pulled away from T-Bone, realizing the smaller SWAT Kat was right. They needed to nip this problem quickly. With Zachary's betrayal, things would have to be done carefully and circumspect. They didn't want to bring Zachary in yet until they could determine who the rogue was and how much he knew. So they would have to pretend they didn't know what he'd done.

It was obvious now that Zachary was acting as a spy so she needed to get the hunters to put him under surveillance, hoping to catch the rogue by following the betrayer. She winced at that word but straightened her shoulders and planned what needed to be done despite her feelings.

"Here's what we need to do......no one tells Zachary we suspect him and everyone must watch their tongue. I'll brief Serena about this as soon as I can. Right now though, Abrielle and I will go to Bruce's house and see if we can find any clues as to why he took him and where the rogue might be hiding. T-Bone, you, Razor and Rick need to find a way to neutralize the rogue once we find him." She ordered quickly.

Razor looked as if he was about to object, but snapped his mouth shut on whatever he was about to say. Instead he walked up to Rick and offered a paw. Rick frowned at Razor for a long moment before finally extending his own paw.

Dena sighed at the sight, grateful the two were able to put aside their differences to work together. "I know it's going to be difficult to hide the fact you know what he's done, Rick, but you'll have to." She said to her friend, aware of just how hard this was going to be for him.

"I know." Rick said grimly. He turned away and gestured to the SWAT Kats. "Come on let's go to my workshop." He told them as he led the way to the back of the club.

Relieved he was not resisting her decisions, Dena turned to Abrielle. "Okay, let's you and I go to your brother's house." Abrielle nodded and they hurried to the exit and to Dena's car.

As Dena drove through traffic, she glanced briefly at her passenger. Abrielle's face reflected worry and fear

"It'll be alright, Abrielle. We'll find your brother and his family." Dena promised, reassuringly.

"I know you will!" Abrielle said, smiling wanly at her. They went silent for a moment again then Abrielle asked a hard question, not looking at Dena. "Dena, do you know why Zachary joined the rogue?"

Dena kept her face blank as she answered. "He's upset that I found a mate and it wasn't him. He was even more upset when he realized it was a SWAT Kat."

"So he's doing this because he loves you?"

Dena couldn't help but shake her head at that comment. "He's always been my friend and cared a great deal for me but this......this has become an obsession to be my mate and it's definitely not love no matter how much he thinks it is." She said grimly, not wanting to think her friend could have become so unstable.

"I have to agree with that assessment, so how are you going to stop him?" Abrielle asked, sighing worriedly.

"…I don't know…at least not yet. I'll have a better idea after we search Bruce's house." Dena said with a sigh of frustration.

Silence fell again and continued until they reached the Anwar home. Dena parked her car out front and they both got out. Abrielle led the way up the walk and opened the door.

Stepping into the foyer, Dena looked around a moment. "You search upstairs for anything that might be missing and I'll look for clues of where they might have gone down here then we'll switch places. " She told her. Abrielle nodded and headed up the stairs while she looked around the living area.

Dena noted the broken glass door in the living area and carefully stepped through it to check the grounds nearby. Finding no clues on the hard ground she returned to the house and checked the kitchen. She immediately saw signs that this was where they probably questioned Bruce. The chairs had been knocked around and the table was pushed back a bit.

Meanwhile upstairs, Abrielle walked down the hallway, pausing to look into her nephew's room. There was nothing but scattered toys and books that lay about on the floor with unmade beds at the end of the room. Sighing, she turned away as tears formed in her eyes, she hated the fact there was nothing else she could do right now to save her brother and his family.

She reached their bedroom and looked around. Again, there was nothing really out of place, the bed was still made, house shoes were at the foot of it, the room tidy. This left only Bruce's study. She reached the end of the hall and stepped into her brother's obvious work space.

She decided to check his computer first but the work left on the screen had nothing the rogue could possibly want. She checked the recycle bin, the desk top, the trash can, then went to check the bookcases. So far she was turning up nothing but as she studied the books she paused in shock as her eyes fell on one book case in particular just across from her brother's desk.

The bookcase at first seemed to hold nothing more than a few books and pictures of the family until she took a closer look. One very important book was missing.

"Dena!" Abrielle yelled rushing over to the case to search it more closely.

She heard footsteps running up the stairs and down the hallway till Dena appeared in the doorway of the study room.

"What is it?" She asked, eyeing Abrielle as she frantically searched a bookcase.

"It's missing!" Abrielle said urgently as she began to look at other bookcases nearby.

"What's missing?" Dena asked coming over to the doe colored she-kat.

"My family spell book! It's gone!"

"What?!"

The family spell book of each clan held the spells designed by that family and their history. It was kept safe by one member of the clan and handed down through one generation after another. It was the most precious article a clan possessed. To have it missing or fall in the wrong paws, was a major disaster. Dena knew they had to find it.

"What does it look like?" She asked, searching the room herself.

"The book is bound in red leather with gold letters on the cover that spell out our last name and is imprinted with the clan symbol which is an inner circle surrounded by a larger circle." Abrielle said distractedly as she continued to search.

"Would your brother have taken somewhere else in the house?"

"No, he always used and stored it here. It was safer that way." Abrielle said shaking her head.

Dena grimaced unhappily. "Alright, then we have to assume the rogue took it, so what could be in your family spell book he'd be interested in?" She asked grimly.

Abrielle frowned and thought hard. "I can't imagine what it could be. I don't understand, everyone knows a spell book from one family can't be used by another. You would have to have that family use it.......oh no......that's why he took my brother." She said in anguish.

"Yes, that much I know but what I don't know is.....why?" Dena pressed her.

"But that's what I don't understand. Our spells deal with looking into the past, future or present." Abrielle started to object than paused suddenly a light going off. "Wait! There is one spell…"

"What is it?"

Abrielle gave Dena a sorrowful look.

"Abrielle?" Dena asked, feeling a sudden cold chill sweep up her spine.

"My family's ancestors developed a special kind of spell that has since been forbidden." She said uneasily.

"What does it do?" Dena asked, no liking how reluctant Abrielle was about discussing this.

"It's a terrible thing and I wish we never came up with it. The spell breaks the bond between mates. It was used to break the bonds of Iriomkats that mated with Kats during the first year our kind went into hiding. We never knew it would have disastrous consequences at the time......."

"What kind of consequences?"

Abrielle wrung her paws together. "The spell had a terrible side effect. It was so horrible the spell was declared forbidden for anyone to use. My clan elders at the time swore to never use it again."

"So just what was this side effect?" Dena asked, knowing it had to very bad to be forbidden.

"When the bond is broken, it feels as if their mate is actually dead. The anguish is intense but soon fades when the pair are kept separated and in the dark about their Kat mate being still alive. However, those pairs that manage to stay together, try desperately to renew the bond. It can't be done so they end up feeling despair, anger, frustration, loneliness and pain. Finally, some can't stand being with their true love and not feel anything for them so they seek the only way out of their misery......death." She said solemnly.

"Death?"

Abrielle nodded, her face grim. "Yes! You see, when the spell was first used it seemed everything was alright. The Iriomkat half of the pair would be persuaded to find an Iriomkat mate. But, as I said, those that couldn't be separated, tried everything to restore their bond. They ended up hurting each other so badly emotionally........" Abrielle left the rest hanging.

"Leaving only death as a means to stop their pain." Dena finished, quietly horrified.

Dena tried to understand why the rogue wanted this spell for himself. She could see why he wanted it in general. It was obvious from what he'd said to Ms. Briggs, that he didn't approve of kats and Iriomkats mating and wanted to put a stop to it. But why did he need it? The only guess she could make was someone close to the rogue was mated to a kat and he wanted to break the bond. She shuddered, what a diabolical plan.

As she thought a little more about it, she was certain this was what Zachary wanted done to hers and T-Bone's bond. She needed to find the rogue quickly before the spell could be casted. They needed to get back to the club immediately to inform Rick, T-Bone and Razor of this new information.

"We've got to let the rest know about this. Let's go!" She told Abrielle.

They both hurried out to Dena's car and rushed back to the club. Once they had returned, Dena led the way to Rick's workshop.

"I've just found out what the rogue is up to and it's imperative we find him immediately. Here's what we found out." Dena told the three males who were startled by her sudden appearance.

They listened grimly as she told them about the missing book and the spell the rogue was apparently after. While she talked, Dena couldn't help but cast worried looks at her mate. She had to find a way to keep her mate from being harmed by the rogue. The three males expressed outrage and horror at the news.

"Well it's a good thing we've come up with something to stop this guy then." Razor growled. "What we've done is alter the shield capabilities of our glovatrix. The shield will deflect any energy blast back at the attacker with double the force. It should effectively knock him out cold.

"But will it work?" Dena asked.

"We won't know for sure till Rick tries it out on himself." Razor said, earning a hard look from Dena. He raised his paws in protest, "Whoa, hey! It was Rick's idea not mine!"

Dena turn away from Razor to look at Rick. "You sure about this?" She asked in concern.

Rick nodded, "I'll be okay. I'll just use a low volt of electricity. The real test will be when Razor uses it against the rogue."

"Be careful okay? I don't need you frying yourself over this." Dena said warningly

"I will." Rick said. "We're going to a secluded place to test it out."

They spent the next hour discussing plans for finding the rogue and Zachary. Dena advised Abrielle to keep alert, maintain a low profile, and pretend everything was normal so they wouldn't tip off Zachary or any other Iriomkats that had joined the rogue. She was also told to contact either Dena or Rick quickly if the rogue made a run at her. She nodded agreement and the meeting broke up.

As they were leaving, T-Bone reach out and caught hold of Dena's right shoulder, making her stop. She made a sound of annoyance, turning to face her mate. She noted his look of concern on his face.

"T-Bone?" She asked questioningly, reaching out and touching his cheek.

He pulled her closer to him and murmured, "It'll be alright, Dena." He had felt her concern for his safety through their bond.

"You're going to have to be on your guard. It's obvious Zachary is going to make a grab for you and if he does......." She began to say, worriedly.

"That won't happen." He cut her off, nuzzling her face.

She shoved him back with her paws, angrily. "You don't know that! Why do you have to be so cocky about everything! This is serious!" Dena snapped at him.

"I'm not being cocky about it. I know just how serious this is for the two of us but it doesn't do us any good to get all tense about it. It will keep us from being alert." T-Bone told her firmly. "Now look, I'll take extra care about my safety, alright? I am coming over tomorrow.......that is if its alright with you?" He asked softly.

Dena sighed in defeat. "Yes. I'm just worried for you." She allowed him to nuzzle again and comfort her.

"I know. But try not to worry so much. You have enough on your plate to be concerned about."

"I know."

With that settled between them, T-Bone walked Dena outside to her vehicle, gave her a quick kiss good bye then turned toward the alley where Razor was waiting for him by their cyclotrons. Tired and still troubled, Dena arrived home where she made herself a light dinner, showered and went to bed. After such a trying day, sleep wasn't hard to attain.

She awoke before her alarm still feeling tired. She wished T-Bone had been able to stay with her last night which would have given her more restful sleep. Yawning, she pushed her bedding off and headed for the shower.

Soon she was dressed in her male persona, and leaving for work. Her mind was on the work she had waiting on her desk and on how they were going to locate the rogue when she strode through the heavy door of Enforcer Headquarters. She'd barely crossed the lobby when her sergeant rushed up to her with an urgent message.

"What's the rush, Sergeant?" She asked with a frown.

"Sir, you've been summoned to city hall." The Sergeant said quickly.

"Did they say why?" Dena asked in annoyance, hoping it wasn't another meeting about one of Manx's get rich quick ideas.

"No sir. All I got was the city council wanted to speak with you." The Sergeant said grimly.

Dena's face went stony. "Damn!" She said flatly. "When do they want me there?" She asked having a pretty good idea that is was very soon.

"They would like you there as soon as possible, sir."

"Fine. I'll leave now. Have Steele watch things till I return. Only call me on my cell if its something major." She ordered.

"Yes, sir!" The Sergeant said as Dena turned around and left the building again, heading for city hall.

Climbing into her car, she thought,' Great, what do they want?' She was fairly certain it had to do with something concerning her kind. If that was the case then she was in for a long meeting with some very stubborn kats. Walking through the doors of city hall, Dean wasn't happy to see Ms. Briggs waiting for her.

"So, what's going on?" She asked as she reached the Deputy Mayor's side.

"I'm sorry Commander. The city council has questions about Iriomkats and insists on speaking to you about it immediately. I couldn't find out why." Callie apologized.

"Don't worry about it, Ms. Briggs. I expected this to happen sooner or later." Dena said with a shrug.

Callie nodded and gave her a wane smile as they got aboard an elevator and headed for the Mayor's floor. Once there, they walked down the hall to the council chambers. Stepping through the door, Dena could see every member of the council was present, something that happened rarely. This didn't look good. What was even more surprising was Mayor Manx was actually attending. Her face in a grim mask, Dena went to the seat meant for constituents while Ms. Briggs took her seat next to the Mayor.

"Commander Feral, I'm glad you could make it." Mayor Manx said in friendly tone. He wanted to avoid any nasty feelings by setting a friendly tone to the meeting because the subject was such a hot one.

"Though the summons was a bit abrupt, I'm not surprised by it. I assume you have more questions concerning my kind and I'm at your disposal to clear up any misunderstandings for the sake of both our species. So, may I ask what you want to discuss?" Dena asked diplomatically.

"We are concerned about the danger your kind represents to ours." Mrs. Roday said soberly.

"Danger to your kind?" Dena said, her voice reflecting her disbelief and rising anger. Her eyes sparked making everyone shift in their seat uneasily.

"Yes, that is correct." Mrs. Roday said firmly, though Feral's reaction had made her nervous.

"May I remind all of you, that it was your kind that had nearly caused the extinction of our species by slavery, torture and death. We went into hiding because of it. I think you should read your history again before you sit there and accuse us of being a threat to you. We have more to fear from you than you of us." She snarled coldly. 'How dare they? How could they forget what katkind had done to Iriomkats?' Dena seethed silently.

Callie smirked mentally at Dena's swift retort as she watched the Mayor and the rest of the council shift uncomfortably under Dena's hard stare and harsh words. She gave Dena a small smile of encouragement, which Feral acknowledged with a knowing look.

'We're not going down without a fight.' Callie thought, aligning herself with the Iriomkats and bracing herself for a long meeting.

It was well after lunch time and Dena was still battling with the council, when Chance decided to close the garage for the day. Razor was with Rick working on converting the glovatrix shield and testing it. Chance had finished up the two jobs they had waiting and decided on going to Dena's apartment early.

He wanted to prepare a nice meal for her and to brief her on the progress of the weapon they would use against the rogue. He had to admit he was surprised at how well Rick and Razor were able to set aside their differences and work together toward finding a solution to their problem.

Chance thought it was because the two of them were inventors. It helped to form a weird kind of friendship between the two. He was glad for that since Razor was still a bit leery of the Iriomkats.

Changing to his T-Bone persona, he took off on his cyclotron and headed for his mate's apartment. He parked the bike in the alley beside her building, climbed off and set his security system. Just as he prepared to rappel to the roof of the building so he wouldn't be seen going into her top floor apartment, he heard someone coming up behind him.

"Hello, T-Bone. I knew you would come by here sooner or later." Zachary said, coming from behind a dumpster where he had apparently been hiding.

"Zachary!" T-Bone shouted, quickly raising his glovatrix to defend himself.

Unfortunately, he was far too slow against the faster reflexes of the Iriomkat as Zachary unleashed a bolt of energy just strong enough to knock the big SWAT Kat out but not kill him.

In the council chamber at city hall, Dena suddenly screamed in pain and shock as her mate was attacked, losing her male persona in the blink of an eye. "Nooooo......" She cried out, her eyes blind and her paws reaching out desperately for her mate whom she now knew had been taken by the rogue.

Back in the alley, Zachary walked up the prone form of T-Bone. Looking down at his rival, he snarled and kicked the insensate tabby kat.

"Bastard! You'll get what's coming to you soon enough." He hissed then took out his cell phone. After only one ring it was answered.

"I got him." Zachary growled in triumph.

"Good. Bring him here." Ordered the voice on the phone then the line went dead.


	16. Chapter 15

_**Chapter Fifteen **_

"_Talking"_

'_Thoughts'_

Dena groaned loudly as she slowly regained consciousness. She blinked her eyes a few times against the sudden glare from the council chamber lights that shone in her face as she lay on her back staring up at the ceiling. Near her, she could hear someone calling to her. It seemed whoever it was had been calling her for some time. She finally recognized it as the Deputy Mayor asking if she was alright.

She mumbled an answer in response and made an attempt to try and get up. Only then did she realize she was in her true form and with that memory crashed in on why she was so addled in the first place. Her mate was in trouble. She gasped and made a greater effort to get off the floor only to be pushed down by a firm paw.

"Don't get up, Commander, stay still for a bit longer." Callie said, relief lacing her voice.

"No, I can't…my…" Dena started to say but stopped as she realized the council was still in session and all eyes were on her. She clamped her lips together. No one needed to know who or why she had fainted and lost her form. Callie especially didn't need to know Dena was now mated and to who.

"Your what, Commander?" Callie asked wondering what was making Feral so anxious. She could see the worry in those gold eyes.

"Nothing that concerns you, Ms. Briggs." Dena mumbled quietly, then politely moved the Deputy Mayor's paw away and sat up slowly.

Callie let her get up though her eyes said she knew something had happened and that this wasn't the end of the subject. Dena got to her feet and stood still until she felt more steady.

"Do you feel well enough to continue, Commander?" Ms. Roday asked, eyeing her in concern.

"Uh, no....I don't think so. Sorry, I've been so busy lately that I've allowed myself to become exhausted and the excess stress of all this." She said, lying while maintaining a stone face. To back up her lie, she allowed herself to appear more rocky than she really was.

Callie continued to eye her in concern, knowing, somehow that Feral wasn't telling the whole truth but didn't call her on it.

"We understand. A lot of things have been shoved on you the last few days by your Elders and your Enforcer duties demanding your attention as well. I suggest we continue this meeting tomorrow, that's if it's alright with you Mayor Manx?" She asked calmly, looking toward the stocky tom.

Sighing to himself, only too relieved to put this ugly business on hold for a while longer, Mayor Manx was only too happy to agree. "Yes, of course, Callie. I think that is an excellent idea. We can all use a break. Shall we meet here again, say at nine a.m. sharp?" He asked the rest of the council.

After a moments hesitation, all the members nodded their agreement.

"Excellent! Then this emergency meeting of the council is hereby closed for the day." The Mayor intoned briskly.

Sighing mentally in relief, Dena quickly excused herself and slipped out the door ahead of the departing council members, hurrying down the hall to the elevator. Lucking out in getting a car, she pushed the lobby button immediately, insuring no one else could board with her.

On the ride down, she cast her illusion spell once more then focused her attention on what she needed to do next. Alerting Elder Serena was an immediate priority then she needed to find Razor and Rick. She knew Razor was going to be angry and upset when he heard of T-Bone's capture by the rogue but she hoped he wouldn't do anything that would put all of them in danger.

All the while she was planning her next move, her instincts were screaming for her to find her mate......now! But she shoved it back and concentrated on getting what she had to first. It wouldn't do T-Bone any good if she rushed in trying to save him and get herself caught as well.

As she stepped off the elevator and strode quickly to the outside doors, her thoughts were interrupted by someone calling for her urgently. She froze and turned to see Ms. Briggs hurrying toward her, a set look of determination on her face.

Callie had been able to catch the elevator next to the one the Commander took and was decanted at the same moment. She shook her head at the sight of the 'now' male Commander when it had been a 'female' who had gotten on the elevator. It was amazing to Callie how Dena did that trick so easily.

Dena groaned mentally, 'Oh please not now!' She badly wanted to hiss that out at the she kat's face right now.

Instead, she said, "What is it, Ms. Briggs?" Her voice level and calm which was a complete contradiction to how she really felt.

"Something serious has happened and you're keeping it close to your chest as usual. I want to know what is going on." She demanded firmly, when she had gotten within an arms length of Dena.

"No." Dena said firmly

"Commander, as Deputy…." Callie started to say in a huff.

"Don't pull that card out with me, Briggs! There are some things you simply don't need to know and Iriomkat business is one of them." Dena said flatly.

"Is it because you can't tell me or won't?" Callie insisted, not letting the subject go.

"Won't." Dena said bluntly then turned her back to Callie and continued on her way through the door and out of the building. Within minutes, she was in her car and speeding toward Elder Serena's home.

It had been late afternoon when she'd left city hall but it was now just dusk when she reached Elder Serena's one story brick house. Two huge front windows flashed with the light of the departing sunlight as she pulled in front of the house. A car was parked in the drive where stood a one car garage.

Before climbing out of her car, she released her glamour spell then got out and walked up the side walk to the front door. She used the stylized knocker on the door and rapped it twice....hard. She looked around the quiet neighborhood as she waited impatiently for someone to answer.

The door popped open and Serena stood there looking at her in surprise. "Dena, is something wrong?" She asked, stepping aside to allow the younger Iriomkat to enter.

"Elder Serena it's about Zachary. He…" Dena began urgently but was distracted by the sound of a door in the house closing. She blinked in surprise and cocked her head at Serena. "Is someone else here?" She asked in concern, thinking she might of come at a bad time.

"Only my mate. He's a bit leery around Iriomkats he doesn't know." Serena said calmly. "Now, you were saying?" She asked, getting Dena to return to the reason she was there.

"Oh....yes....it's about Zachary. He's joined with the rogue." She said bitterly then went on to tell Serena what had transpired recently; Anwar's kidnapping along with his family, the reason being a forbidden spell in his family's spell book, Zachary's recent behavior, the creation of a weapon by Rick and Razor to fight the rogue, and finally the recent kidnapping of her mate.

Serena listened carefully, her face going grave from this terrible news. "I will have to inform the others about this so they will hold their tongues in Zachary's presence. Do you know if this glovatrix shield will work?" Serena asked distractedly

"I won't know for sure till I speak with Razor and Rick. But Razor is a really intelligent Kat and if he says he can invent something like that, it's a safe bet he will succeed." Dena said trying to be upbeat.

"Well that's good to know. I remember the SWAT Kats always seemed to manage pulling off the impossible in the end that takes out the bad guys. We'll just let Razor do what he does best. Don't lose hope Dena, I'm sure you'll find T-Bone in time before anything bad happens to him. He's not an easy Kat to overcome and that's to our benefit. Now hurry off and see if Rick and Razor have completed their new weapon." Serena said encouragingly.

"I will."

"Oh and Dena before you go......" Serena said, stopping the other Iriomkat.

Dena paused to eye her questioningly. "Yes?"

Serena walked closer to her and placed both of her paws on Dena's shoulders. "Whatever happens from here on out, don't blame yourself over the results. Sometimes…sometimes things can get out of control and can't be stopped it no matter how hard we try. Know that nothing you did or didn't do will be able to change what will be no matter how much we wish we could change the outcome. Understand?" She asked seriously.

"I understand, at least I think I do." Dena said trying to make sense of Serena words.

Serena slowly nodded, "Alright, go on. I've kept you here along enough."

Dena nodded and went out the door Serena opened for her. She hurried to her car and climbed in. As her car disappeared from view, Serena closed her door and turned as her mate walked toward her from the hallway looking grim faced.

"We've done everything we could, but I'm afraid it still will not be enough." Serena said worriedly.

Jake moved to her side and wrapped his arms around her. "I know my love." He said soothingly.

Meanwhile, as Dena was driving toward the city, she saw by her watch that she would be able to catch Razor and Rick still at his shop. She passed through the city center and reached an area of abandoned stores and homes. Making a couple of turns into the heart of the area, she finally reached and old abandoned high school.

For security reason, she parked a block from the school. Locking her vehicle, she quickly walked back to the school. When she reached it, she walked around toward the back. Here was the football field with bleachers on both sides of the field and sitting nearby was the gym building.

This was her destination. She tried the door and found it unlocked as Rick was prone to do when he was here working on his inventions. Pulling the door open, she stepped in and made for a staircase to one side of the entrance. She climbed them to the top, before her was a set of double doors that led to the basketball courts.

Dena pushed the doors open in time to see Rick and Razor putting things away and getting ready to leave. It was Razor who spotted her first.

"Dena, what are you doing here?" Razor called out from his position in the middle of the gym floor with Rick next to him.

Rick paused in his packing and from his kneeling position looked over his shoulder at her. He didn't like the look in Dena's eyes even though she kept her face expressionless.

Without a word, Dena power walked over to the pair. Rick's frown of concern deepened as he stood up to greet her. Razor frowned as well. He could see something bad had happened.

As soon as she got close enough, she blurted out, "Zachary....he's captured T-Bone.....I...." Whatever else she was going to say was cut off by an explosive shout from Razor.

"What?! When did this happen?!"

"This afternoon. T-Bone said he planned on meeting me at my apartment and I can only assume Zachary was laying in wait for him there." Dena said in anguished dismay. Her face finally showing her fear and worry.

Fear and fury filled Razor as he growled and suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Dena by her coat collar. "This all your fault! If you hadn't been locked in that vault with T-Bone none of this would have happened!"

"Back off, Razor!" Rick snapped, jumping between the two of them and shoving the smaller SWAT Kat off Dena.

"It hardly matters when Dena and T-Bone came together. They were fated to be mates and nothing would have prevented that. Don't forget, you and T-Bone always manage to be involved in everything Dena is so this could have happened at anytime. Don't blame her!" He growled angrily.

"We have to because the enforcers are unable to do the job on their own. What we do insures the protection of the city and its Katizens." Razor snarled back.

"Bullshit! If you really wanted to protect the city like you say you want to then join the Enforcers!"

"We can't!"

"Enough!" Dena roared, furious at their fighting when there was no time for this pissing contest males were prone to. Razor and Rick froze in shock and stared at her. "Who gives a damn whose fault it is? What matters now is finding my mate and your best friend, Razor, before the rogue and Zachary do anything to him! So quit your fucking fighting and tell me if those shields work or not damn it!"

Razor blinked in amazement as he stared at the dark brown Iriomkat female as if he'd never seen her before. In all the time he'd known the Chief Enforcer, he'd never heard a curse word fall from those lips.....ever. Lose her temper constantly.....but swear.....never! Wow, was she angry and scared, Razor finally realized. Sighing he let go his anger. She was right, now wasn't the time to indulge in fits of anger.

As for Rick, he wasn't surprised that Dena had lost her temper but he'd never heard a swear word come from her mouth before and he was totally shocked. Her anger and obvious worry was no surprise because an Iriomkat would do anything in their power to protect their mate and kits even at the risk of losing their own life. Chastising himself for getting into a useless argument when she was beside herself with worry, he got them back on track by answering her question.

"It should work but we still need more time to test it." Rick said but knew it wouldn't matter.

"We don't have time." She said bluntly. "Razor, is T-Bone's glovatrix fitted the same as yours?" Dena asked.

Razor shook his head. "Only mine has been altered so far but I can make you one when I get back to the hangar. I'll get it done quickly and get it to you quickly."

Before Dena could respond, the gym doors swung open suddenly. They stiffened at the sight of the one standing in the door looking at them.

Zachary had a false smile on his face as he released the doors and walked calmly toward them. "So this is where you two have been. I've been looking all over for you. Dena, you should have told me where you'd be." He said jovially. He ignored Razor as he approached the other two.

So involved in his act of nonchalance, Zachary never noticed how tense Rick was and how he refused to look at him while Razor's body vibrated with barely leashed fury and he never noted the fact Dena had her paws clenched into tight fists reflecting the rage within her.

He blindly walked up to them and asked, "What's wrong? What's up with the silent treatment? Did I do something wrong?" He asked when he finally felt the tense silence greeting him. He halted a short distance from them in confusion.

A brown blur flashed past Rick and Razor as Dena moved like lightning to tackle Zachary to the floor. They watched as she wrapped her fingers around his neck then shot a powerful jolt of energy into him......not enough for unconsciousness but enough to paralyze.

Some hours earlier, T-Bone gradually regained consciousness and groaned loudly. He tried to rise but halted as the room went spinning at first before finally slowing down. He rubbed his temples to ease his aching head.

"Crud! Where am I?" He asked the air, not really expecting an answer.

"In a warehouse somewhere near the Megakat docks." A male voice answered.

T-Bone lifted his head slowly and turned toward the voice. Across from him, leaning against his cage bars, was a tan colored tom with gray eyes. Rolling onto his side, T-Bone realized he was in a cage too. Looking around the room he spotted another cage across from his that held a white furred she-kat with blue eyes, her arms wrapped around two kittens who eyed him with wide eyes.

"Don't worry! I'll find a way to get us out of here." He said quietly as he got to his feet. Only then did he realize his glovatrix was gone. No surprise there, he sighed.

"They took it and even if you did have your gadget it won't do you any good. The barrier spell on our cells is very strong and your normal weapons won't work on it." The tom said bluntly.

"Who are you? Why are you here in the first place?" T-Bone asked.

"I'm Bruce Anwar. The rogue took me to cast a spell that will break your bonding with the rogue's sister." The tom said unhappily.

"Your Abrielle's brother. We heard about you and what happened and have been making plans to find you. Don't worry, Dena, Rick and my partner will find us soon." T-Bone said firmly.

Bruce shook head, "No, they won't. First, they don't know where we are and, second, it will be far too late."

"It doesn't help to be negative. A positive attitude can see you through anything. My partner and I have gotten out of tougher situations. There must be something you are capable of that might work to our advantage. So stop thinking negatively and start thinking defensively." T-Bone growled.

"I'm sorry but I'm not a warrior and don't know the first thing about fighting or my family wouldn't have been taken so easily." Anwar said bitterly.

"I'm not blaming you for this situation. Not everyone is cut out to be a warrior. That's not a crime what is wrong is not using what tools you have to try and correct your situation." T-Bone said gravely. "I understand completely how helpless you must feel having your family in danger believe me."

Anwar blushed in embarrassment. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to snap at you. You're right I'm very worried about saving my family."

"Don't be! I would be doing the same thing if I was in your place." T-Bone said gently then asked, "I know about the spell your family developed and what it does but I'm still confused about why the rogue wants it......as for Zachary....I know his reason only to well."

"I told you, it's the same reason the rogue wants it broken." Bruce answered moving closer to T-Bone's side of the cage. "He knows what will happen when the spell is used but neither one of them cares."

"The same reason?" T-Bone said 'Damn, that certainly confirms what his behavior was saying but still doesn't answer who this rogue is.' T-Bone thought. Before he could ask anything else they were interrupted by the sound of a door opening and closing followed by foot steps.

Bruce and he fell silent and went tense for different reasons. Bruce's wife, Lesley hurriedly moved as far back in her cage as she could, hiding her kittens behind her as two Iriomkat males entered the area where they were being held.

T-Bone's mouth fell open in shock at the large brown tom that came to stand before his cage. "You! But why!?" T-Bone asked Demon.

"Because you kats are disgusting creatures and need to be put in your place." Demon said emotionlessly looking at T-Bone with unfeeling cold eyes.

"Dena trusted you! Both of you! How can you do this to her?!" T-Bone snarled angrily at them as his paws clutched tightly the bars of his cage.

Demon tesked at him, "You should talk! You don't deserve to be around Dena much less be with her."

"What?! What right do you have…"

"I'm her brother! That gives me the right! Scum like you will only hurt her in the end." Demon barked.

With that Demon turned his attention toward Bruce who simply snarled at him. Demon simply smirked at him.

"Don't forget your part of our deal now. You won't want anything to happen to your mixed family now would you?" Demon said sinisterly

Bruce grit his teeth in anguish and closed his eyes, turning his head away. "No, I haven't forgotten. I'll cast the spell." He bite out bitterly.

Satisfied, Demon nodded then turned to walk away, Zachary moving to follow after him until T-bone forced him to stop.

"So what's your reason, Zachary? You were her best friend. What's your reason for betraying her now?" T-Bone demanded.

Zachary came closer to T-Bone's cage once more and hissed at him. "I'm not betraying her! If anything, I'm trying to save her. Dena needs someone who understands her and won't use her as he sees fit as you do." He began to walk off but paused. "Oh, and T-Bone....." He said suddenly moving closer till he was face to face with the tabby. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of my mate." He said with a cold smirk on his face and then followed after Demon.

"It won't matter because I'll still be around and I'll make sure that she and I will remain mates even after the spell is cast." T-Bone shouted after him, fiercely.

Zachary sniggered a little at T-Bone's words. "Nothing you do will matter because you will be dead once the spell is finished. I promise you that." Floated over his shoulder as he vanished from sight.

Outside the warehouse where their prisoners were being held, Zachary parted from Demon and headed for his car. He need to find Dena and be by her side when the spell was cast to offer her comfort.

When the door shut behind Zachary and Demon, T-Bone pulled his paws away from the bars he had been gripping so tightly. He looked over at Bruce and spoke resolutely.

"You and I need to work together if we are to have a chance of getting out of here. We have to come up with a way to save your family and tell Dena who the rogue is!" The tabby said grimly. 'Dena is going to be so upset when she learns her own brother is responsible for all the grief that's been happening!' T-Bone thought unhappily. 'I hope she is alright!'

Bruce stared at T-Bone thoughtfully and considered his words. He wasn't sure if they could really come up with a way out of here but as he looked over at his mate and kittens, he knew he had to try. There was no insurance that Demon would keep his word to release his family unharmed. His hatred of Kats and mixes ran too deep to be trusted.

"What…what do you have in mind?" Bruce asked, uncertainly.

While T-Bone and Bruce discussed ways to escape, Zachary had arrived at Club Irme. He walked to the front doors and was stunned to see a note that said the club was closed for fumigation for the next few days. He wondered why Rick hadn't told him.

Confused, he went back to his car. He needed to find Dena. He knew she would be worried about T-Bone as she would have felt his capture earlier. He wanted to offer his concern and keep her company until everything was over. Now he would just have to search for her. He knew he had been missing for a few days from work but he thought Rick would have called him if something had happen. He pulled out his cell phone and checked for any missed calls or messages but there were none.

He moved away from his car and went around to the back of club to a staircase that lead to a second floor apartment where he and his brother lived. Entering the apartment, he called for Rick but was greeted with silence. He looked around to see if his brother had left him a note but found nothing.

Frowning in concern, Zachary left his home and tried to think where his brother might be as he made his way down the stairs and back to his car. Then it came to him.

"Of course, the gym!" He murmured to himself. Climbing into his car he took off for his brother's workshop. The gym at the old high school was where Rick would often be found working some invention or other.

Ten minutes later, he arrived at the abandoned high school. As he parked his car, he noted Dena's was right nearby. He smiled and climbed out of his vehicle and walked swiftly to the gym. Running up the stairs, he pushed open the doors and found he had been right.

Dena and Rick were at the center of the gym. His smile turned sour though when he also saw the cinnamon tom known as Razor. He growled mentally but warned himself to stay calm and just ignore the SWAT Kat. He was so busy pretending that he failed to note the hostility being directed toward him until it was too late.

Now he lay helpless from Dena's unexpected attack. His body jolted from the shock Dena had delivered when she'd grabbed him by the throat. He blinked up at her in stunned amazement and dismay.

Dena panted heavily as she gradually let go of her once best friend's neck. She then grad Zachary by the shirt collar and pulled him to his feet as she got to her own feet. She dragged him over to the side of the court and threw him against the stone wall beside the bleachers.

"We know everything Zachary." Dena hissed. "But what we don't know is who the rogue is or where he's hiding and where you've taken my mate."

Zachary couldn't move any part of his body except his eyes which darted to each of them before settling on Dena once more. His body hurt from being thrown against the wall but not as much as it hurt to see that look of hatred in Dena's eyes as she looked at him.

"I'm only going to say this once. Tell me where my mate is." Dena demanded coldly.

Zachary grunt out a harsh 'no'. Dena growled and grabbed him again by his collar, pulling him to eye level.

"I'm not playing around! Tell me where my mate is!" Dena hissed, flashing fangs.

"No.....Rick…" Zachary called out to his brother.

Rick shook his head sadly. "No, Zachary. You need to face the consequences of your actions."

Before Zachary could say anything else, he felt himself being jerked out of Dena's paws and being brought face to face with an angry Razor.

"Listen scumbag! Tell us were T-Bone is or else…"

"Or else what?" Zachary sneered at Razor, "You can't do anything to me so fuck off!"

Razor growled threateningly at him but lost the Iriomkat to Dena who had once more yanked Zachary into her paws.

"He can't but I can. I had enough of this! You leave me no choice." Dena said heavily, almost in an apology.

Zachary's eyes widened with fear, "No, Dena! Don't do it!"

"Rick, I'm sorry to do this to your brother." Dena said turning her head to apologize to her long time friend.

"I know, you don't like doing this but if we are to stop the rogue and find T-Bone, it needs to be done." Rick said sadly but agreed with her reasons.

Razor glanced at the two of them, trying to fathom what they were talking about. Whatever it was had Zachary scared. Only, Dena looked upset and sorrowful about what she was about to do as did Rick. 'What the heck was going to happen?' thought Razor.

Dena laid Zachary on the floor and knelt down beside him. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She needed to have her emotions under control if she was to cast the spell correctly. Lifting up her paw, she covered Zachary's face with it as she closed her eyes speaking the spell words.

Razor's eyes widen as Zachary's eyes suddenly began to glow a solid light blue color while Dena's paw glowed a soft gold color. He gasped as he noted Dena's eyes were open wide and glowing the same color.

"What's she doing?!" Razor whispered, not wanting to disturb whatever Dena was doing.

"She's scanning Zachary's memories." Rick said unhappily.

"How?"

"Dena enters the kat or Iriomkats mind by creating a link using their life force. With that she can access any part of the person's mind allowing her to search their memories for the information she needs."

"But why did Dena look like she didn't want to use it?" Razor asked looking at Rick.

"Because Razor, when she goes through a kat or Iriomkat memories, it's like she is them and they are her. Feeling every emotion that person felt through their lifetime." Rick said regretfully.

"Then why didn't you cast the spell?" Razor asked.

Rick shook his head in regret. "I can't. It's a clan spell that can only be used by the clan family that developed it."

Razor was silent a moment, absorbing this bit of information. "Does this mean T-Bone will be able to use this magic as well?" He asked in amazement.

"Yes."

A gasp from Dena alerted Razor and Rick. They moved a little closer to her but didn't touch her. Dena broke contact with Zachary's mind, letting go of him. But the look on Dena's face was that of disbelief, deep regret and pain. Tears began to fall freely as she covered her face with her paws and sat back on her knees.

"Dena?!" Rick said worriedly, dropping down beside her and wrapping his arms around her, providing comfort.

Razor knelt down as well and asked softly, "Dena you have to tell us. What did you see? Please!"

"How?…How can I choose between my mate and my own brother?!" Dena cried out in anguish.

Rick and Razor looked at each other in stunned silence. Zachary could only watch, his body still paralyzed, an expression of guilt and remorse spreading across his face.


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Rick was the first to recover from the shocking news, quickly wrapping his arms around Dena to comfort her. What a horrible choice to make…protecting her new mate or the last living member of her family. He grieved for her, knowing full well what her choice would have to be.

"I'm so sorry, Dena." He said softly.

"Oh Rick…how can I do this? My brother's the rogue and holding my mate hostage. My own brother!" She choked bitterly.

"You will because you must!" Rick said firmly, shaking her a bit by the shoulders.

Dena gaped at Rick in surprise at his rough treatment then took a deep breath and settled herself. "You're right! There must be a way to save both of them. I just have to find it." She said, coming to a decision.

"How can you say that!" Razor shouted finally finding his own voice.

"What would you have me say, Razor? That my brother should die just to save T-Bone? What would your partner say about that?" She said sharply, rising to her feet to face the infuriated SWAT Kat.

"I'm sorry your brother is the rogue but he's killed and shouldn't be shown any mercy. Add to that cold blooded crime he's kidnapped your own mate! That's all you need to concentrate on!" Razor growled angrily.

"It's not that simple, Razor…" Dena started to argue back before Rick came between them.

"Stop it! There's no time for this bickering. Razor! You should head back to your hangar and begin working on other shield. Dena and I will take care of my brother."

Razor grumbled under his breath still hot from his argument with Dena but he knew Rick was right. He reached into a pocket of his G-suit and pulled out a small device.

"Here take this. I'll contact you when I've finished altering T-Bone's glovatrix." He said flatly, handing over the comm to Rick. Without another word, he turned on his heel and stalked away.

The distant slam of a door signaled the departure of the SWAT Kat which stirred the pair into action. They'd been standing silently each in their own thoughts until the noise jarred them. Dena huffed out a frustrated breath as she looked down at her once best friend.

"Come on! We need to take Zachary to a holding cell." She said reluctantly, making a spell gesture toward the downed Iriomkat.

Zachary whined when the paralyzing spell hit him. He couldn't move any part of his body. Now that he couldn't escape, Dena leaned down and pulled an arm up to drape around her shoulder as Rick did the same on the other side. Between them they easily carried Zachary out of the gym and down the stairs.

No one was about as they walked past the high school and down the street to Dena's car. She leaned forward and opened the back door. Releasing Zachary, she allowed Rick to lay the male on the back seat and wrap a seat belt over his waist to hold him in place. He slammed the door then went around to the passenger side and slide in. Dena was already in the driver's seat and starting the engine.

She drove to another part of the city where an abandoned hospital stood looking worn and decayed. Just like the high school, the building was more than it seemed. These buildings were bought by the Iriomkats to serve various purposes that hid them better from Kat kind.

Dena drove past the hospital until she came to an alley running beside it and turned. She drove until she reached a small side door where employees used to enter. She parked beside the building and shut off the engine.

Rick jumped out and went to the back door and opened it. He reached in and undid the seat belt and hauled Zachary out. Dena was already waiting to help. They carried him to the door where she opened it and they stepped through. The door closed silently behind them. It was obvious the door was well maintained.

They walked down a short hallway until they reached the main lobby of the old hospital and went to the second of a pair of elevators. Here again, the elevator had power and was working well even if its exterior look dusty and unused. They got into the car and Rick reached out to a strange looking keypad that was there instead of floor buttons. He tapped in a code, the doors closed and they moved downward.

"Dena…I…" Zachary tried to say.

"Don't say anything." Dena said coldly, ignoring him.

Zachary swallowed unhappily but stayed silent. The elevator stopped and the doors snapped open. Stepping out they moved their prisoner down a short hall and went through a door. Lining the walls here were cells. At the entrance to the hall was a guard post. Two guards eyed them questioningly. They recognized Dena immediately.

"What's going on Commander?" The oldest of the pair asked.

Clearing her suddenly tight throat, Dena said grimly, "Zachary Bishop has been caught aiding and abetting the rogue. He's to face the council for his crime. Lock him up until they summon him."

The older guard nodded grimly. He gestured his partner to go ahead of them to open a cell. "Follow me." He said.

Dena and Rick carried Zachary after the pair of guards. The cell was waiting when they walked up to it. They carried their prisoner into the cell and laid him on the bed then turned and went out of the cell. Dena cast a reversal spell and Zachary sighed in relief, able to move again.

Rick looked at his brother in sorrow and anger. The older guard prepared to lay a warding spell over the cell when Dena held up a palm to stop him.

He looked at her in surprise. "Commander?"

"I'll lay the initial warding spell. We don't want him to find a way to warn the rogue." She said firmly.

"Are you suggesting my spells won't be sufficient?" The guard growled, affronted.

"No. But too much is riding on him not being able to get out by a sympathizer among your ranks or finding another way to reach the rogue. We can't take any chances. I will lay the first layer of spells then you will lay yours on top." She explained calmly.

"Ah....I see. Very well." He said in understanding and waited for her.

Dena then stood in front of the cell her paws raised. Concentrating, she laid out the spell in her mind then cast it. Her paws glowed a silver-blue before she pushed it toward the cell, encompassing it. Lowering her paws, satisfied the spell had set the way she wanted, she turned and nodded at the guard. The guard in turn concentrated his paws glowing a gold color as he pushed his own spell at the cell. It merged with Dena's and glowed purple for a moment then disappeared. Dena nodded in approval then turned to leave without saying a word. Rick kept to her side and said nothing until they climbed aboard the elevator and were going back up.

"Dena that was a three layered warding spell. You don't think they noticed that?" Rick asked glancing over his shoulder.

"No one has seen such a spell since my father's time and even then it was rare. If you noticed, the guard never thought there was anything amiss. Now we wait for Razor to contact us." She said quietly then glanced at her companion and was surprised to see his look of approval for the extra caution she'd taken, she blushed at that and turned away.

As they walked across the lobby for the side door her steps slowed then finally halted short of the door. The past few hours caught up with her and she worried how her mate was doing and how long they would have to wait for Razor.

Sensing her anxiety, Rick placed a paw on her shoulder and squeezed gently. She turned her head and looked at him. He gave her an encouraging smile and she returned it with a wane one of her own. She moved again and they went out the door and to her car. They decided to just wait in the car for Razor's call.

Fortunately, it wasn't too much later, when Razor finally contacted them and told them he would meet them at the warehouse Dena had seen in Zachary's mind. Dena gave Razor the address and started her engine. As the three took off for the warehouse, something odd was happening at their destination.

Outside the warehouse, a cloaked figure was approaching a side door. Surrounding the figure were pink creatures that chattered and flapped around.

"Quiet!" Dark Kat commanded softly and received instant silence as he moved to unlock the door.

He slid it open quietly and slipped inside, closing the door once his minions had gotten in as well. He ordered the creeplings to do a search of the premises to insure there was no one in here that shouldn't be.

In very short order, a creepling returned in a hurry. It shrieked and pointed back the way it had come. A scowl lit Dark Kat's features at being told there were intruders using his warehouse.

He needed to see to this immediately. He signaled the creepling to lead the way and he stalked further into the building. As he passed through an alleyway of boxes and crates he came out into an area that held large cages. Frowning, he studied the occupants of the cages. The prisoners hadn't discovered him yet.

The cage nearest to him, held a she-kat with two kittens that were clinging to her. In the cage across from hers, a male was standing near the bars with the distinctive markings of an Iriomkat and next to his was, of all things, a SWAT Kat.

"Well, well what have we here? An unexpected treasure right under my nose." Dark Kat rumbled in surprised pleasure. His voice startled the prisoners.

T-Bone went cold as he took up a defensive stance. "Dark Kat!"

Dark Kat walked into the space and over to T-Bone's cage.

"What a perfect place for you!" He smirked then glanced at the other male. "An Iriomkat. It's been a long time since I've seen your kind......alive anyway." He drawled, making Bruce's fur stand on end with its menace.

"What are you doing here? And how do you know what he is?" T-Bone demanded, watching his enemy cautiously.

"This is my warehouse and as to why I'm here. I need the materials for the up coming war of course. And I've known about these creatures for over fifty years ever since the last rogue appeared." Dark Kat said in amusement.

"War?! What war?!" T-Bone blurted in shock.

Dark Kat snorted. "The one about to take place between Kats and Iriomkats. They fear each other too much to ever be friends. First blood has already been drawn. It's only a matter of time before the Kats retaliate."

"And you're planning to use the war to take over the city." Bruce said flatly already guessing Dark Kat's plan.

"That might happen......if he was still alive!" A familiar cold voice stated.

Dark Kat whirled around to face Demon who was standing a short distance from him. The omega blinked at the sight of dead creeplings just behind the Iriomkat. Demon had killed them so swiftly, they hadn't had a chance to warn their master.

"You dare......." Dark Kat growled furiously turning to get away knowing how dangerous these creatures were and not willing to confront him at this time when the advantage wasn't his.

A bolt of energy slammed into a crate where Dark Kat had been. The omega dodged another bolt aimed at him before finding an escape route through some crates on the other side of the cages and went running down it out of sight. Demon growled furiously. No way would some ego maniac Kat interfere with his plans. He had to be silenced immediately there was just too much at stake.

"I'll deal with him now and you later T-Bone." Demon promised as he took off to follow Dark Kat's trail, his paws glowing with energy.

"He's going to kill him." Bruce said

"Good that will give us time to try and get out of here." T-Bone said without remorse. "Bruce do you know how to bring the spell down?"

Bruce touched the cage bars briefly. It sparked a moment before fading away.

"No, this is not a common spell so I can't break it without using almost all my energy. However, if we both tried, we might succeed." He said thoughtfully.

"Huh? I can't do magic. I don't know the first thing about magic!" T-Bone objected.

"You're mated to an Iriomkat, aren't you?" Bruce asked.

"Yeah, so?"

"So you're now linked to magic through your mate. I'll do the work. All I need from you is the energy you share with your mate." Bruce told him, reaching for the tom's paw.

T-Bone stared at the paw for a moment before placing his paw in Bruce's. T-Bone gasped as he began to feel some of his own energy leaving his body and traveling into Bruce. The Iriomkat concentrated and pushed a dispersal spell against the one on the bars making it spark.

Unknown to them, outside the warehouse Dena, Rick and Razor had just arrived and were planning on how to enter the warehouse.

"When you find T-Bone, Dena, give him this." Razor said handing her the altered glovatrix.

"Right!" She said, taking it from him and putting it in her coat pocket.

As they made their way to the side door the sound of breaking glass made them look up in time to see a blot of energy shoot out to the sky.

"T-Bone!" Dena cried out in fear.

Without waiting for the other two, Dena grabbed the door and yanked it open, charging into the room. Razor and Rick were hot on her heels. As they made their way through the dim warehouse they heard fighting.

Dena prayed it wasn't T-Bone and her brother. They followed the sounds and found dead creeplings and the prisoners but not where the fighting was coming from.

"T-Bone!" Razor and Dena said in unison spotting the tiger tabby standing near a set of cages with Bruce.

T-Bone turned in surprise to see Razor, Dena and Rick running toward them. Dena ran to his side immediately and he wrapped a protective arm around her pulling her close so he could nuzzle her neck drawing her scent in to reassure himself she was truly here.

He looked past them and asked, "Where's Zachary?"

"In an Iriomkat cell. We discovered what he was up to and forced him to tell us where you were." Dena said quietly.

"Oh, Dena! I'm sorry, I know he was a friend of yours." T-Bone said gently.

"I ....." She started to say before she was interrupted.

"I hate to break this little reunion, but I need help here." Bruce said urgently, as he stood near his mate's cage.

"Oh, sorry." Dena said pulling away from T-Bone and going over to the cage to study its defenses. It sparked at her touch as it had for Bruce earlier.

Dena frowned unhappily. "It's the same one I used at the prison."

"Can you break it?" Bruce asked, hopefully.

She nodded, "Stand back."

Bruce did so while Lesley moved her kittens and herself back. Dena placed her paws between the bars again speaking the spell. Her paws released a golden red bolt that wrapped around the cage. The cage then glowed a silver blue before fading away. Dena dropped her paws and moved back. Bruce moved forward zipping the lock away. He opened the cage door allowing his mate and kittens out.

T-Bone and Razor watched as Bruce's mate and kittens raced toward their mate and father. Bruce greeted them in relief. But the tender scene was cut short as Rick suddenly cried out in pain. He stumbled a bit then fell. He looked behind the others and stared in horror. The others whirled around to see Demon standing on the other side of the cages where Dark Kat had fled. He was covered in blood spatter and his arms were deeply clawed.

"Rick, get Bruce and his family out of here!" Dena shouted automatically standing before her brother to allow them to escape. T-Bone and Razor stood at her side.

Rick grunted in pain but got to his feet and gathered the others and hustled them toward the exit.

"Be careful, Dena!" He called over his shoulder.

"No one's going anywhere!" Demon growled, firing a bolt passed the group in front of him but Rick had managed to duck and keep going.

Before Demon could fire another shot at the departing Iriomkats, Razor raised his glovatrix and erected the special shield moving to block.

Demon's next shot hit that shield and Razor grunted at the force of it. The Iriomkat's eyes widened in shock as his bolt came back at him. His quick reflexes saved him as he threw himself to the side out of the way.

Dena hurriedly pulled the altered glovatrix from her pocket and tossed it to her mate. "T-Bone, catch! Razor already altered it. Get out of here and guard the others while I deal with my brother." She ordered.

Before T-Bone could object Dena was already gathering her energy and firing it at Demon. He ducked again. As she gathered more energy for another shot and moved forward to block her brother from her mate Demon snapped at her.

"Get out of the way, Dena! I don't want to hurt you again!"

"No! Give it up Demon! If you do I'll help you the best I can once this is over." Dena pleaded with him.

"I'm not giving up! You know what Kats did to our family and to me personally! How can you just stand there and help them!?" He shouted, furious with her.

"Because not all Kats are bad just as not all Iriomkats are good!" She argued.

Demon roared angrily and quickly gathered energy firing it at the SWAT Kats still trying not to hurt his sister. T-Bone grabbed Dena and raised his shield just as Razor was doing and deflected the bolt. When the energy splashed away they discovered Demon was gone.

"T-Bone let me go! I have to go after him!" Dena said angrily. She didn't want to break her mates arms but she would get free.

"Not without me you're not and I'm not leaving!" T-Bone stated flatly as he released her.

She sighed in resignation. Her mate was one stubborn Kat.

T-Bone turned to his partner, "Razor take the left side we'll take the right."

Razor nodded, "Alert me if you cross Demon. I'll do the same if I run into him."

With that Razor took off moving quickly and quietly while T-Bone and Dena did the same. They had only gone a short ways when their noses picked up the gruesome scent of burned fur. They didn't say anything as they raced to where the scent was coming from and came upon a burned form. Its clothes told them who it was.

"Dark Kat." T-Bone muttered softly, kneeling to take a closer look.

"He was here?" Dena asked in surprise but kept her eyes watching their surroundings.

"Yeah, but it looks like we don't have to worry about him anymore." He sighed then felt pain around his neck. He whirled back to his feet and saw Demon holding his sister by the throat.

Trying to ignore the pain they shared, T-Bone moved slowly close to Demon. "Let her go!"

"No!" Demon said tightening his hold T-Bone could feel his air being cut off as well.

"Demon…" Dena gasped, struggling to get her brother to let her go.

"Be quiet!" He snapped at her. "I'm not going to allow this! My sister is not being mated to some disgusting creature like you anymore!" Demon snarled furiously. "I'll make sure of it!"

While T-Bone tried to reach Demon despite being choked he watched in horror as Demon placed his paw on his sister's stomach and shot a jolt of energy through her body. T-Bone screamed with Dena at the searing pain. Rage roared through him temporarily swamping the bond and allowing him to lunge at Demon.

Demon was so focused on punishing his sister he didn't see T-Bone charging toward him until the SWAT Kat was on top of him. The three fell to the floor. Demon released Dena and she rolled away in agony her body shaking. T-Bone was thrown off Demon as well and before he could jump back on the Iriomkat, Demon snatched the tom by the throat and squeezed.

T-Bone clawed at Demon's arms struggling to get some kind of purchase to break the other male's hold. Through his fading vision, he could see Demon grinning viciously at him. With what little strength he had left T-Bone used his unsheathed claws to swipe at Demon not knowing where he would land his blow since he could no longer see.

Dena had been gasping and choking when her mate was gripped by her brother. Through oxygen starved eyes she watched in horror as T-Bone's claws slashed across her brother's throat ripping it open. Blood flowed out of Demon like a river making him let go of the tom's throat.

The Iriomkat stood up in shock clapping both his paws over his throat to try and stop the bleeding. It did no good. As he lost more blood and his breathing was inhibited, he wheezed and gasped. He fell to the ground and gargled as if drowning, which he was. He looked over at his sister helplessly then his eyes rolled up and he went still.

As T-Bone got his breath back he rubbed his neck and watched as Demon went still and his life blood pooled on the floor. Horrified, he moved to the stricken Iriomkat's side and checked his pulse but there was none. He looked over at Dena, who was finally sitting up rubbing her throat and saw her shocked stare.

"D-Dena....I.....I wasn't trying to kill him.... I swear!" He pleaded anxiously.

Dena shook her head and struggled to her feet. She wouldn't look at him as she staggered away from the scene of death. T-Bone tried to rise to follow her but his body was too oxygen starved to obey yet.

"T-Bone!" Razor shouted as he came running up to him.

Razor spotted Demon and saw the blood on the floor then on T-Bone's paw. He heard footsteps and saw Dena walking away. Frowning with worry, he knelt down near his partner and placed a paw on his shoulder.

T-Bone stared at him in anguish. "Razor, I didn't mean to kill him! I swear, he was choking me....I couldn't breath....I didn't even see what I was aiming for...... I…I…"

"Easy buddy. I know you didn't mean it. Just…just give Dena time to see that. Right now, I think she's confused on what to do and how to react." Razor said comforting his best friend the best he could.


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

Two days had passed since Demon and Dark Kat had died in that warehouse. To Dena, that night replayed itself over and over in her mind. The guilt, pain and loss of her brother by her mate caused her to shut down the link between them. She couldn't bear his pain and hers. She felt numb and lost without T-Bone to comfort her but it was her choice.

But no matter how she felt, she was still the Chief Enforcer of this city and was required to report the deaths. It didn't help her piece of mind that she had to lie about how the rogue and an omega died. To keep her mate safe, she wrote a fabrication that Demon and Dark Kat had managed to kill each other. She didn't put in the report that Demon had kidnapped Iriomkats either. It would have just caused more problems.

She stood by while her CSI and the coroner dealt with the bodies. Dark Kat's identity was verified but she didn't help them identify Demon. The coroner's office had to list it as a John Doe.

Dena pulled strings and managed to get Demon's body sent to a special holding area within Iriomkat lands meant for that purpose. She didn't want Kats doing an autopsy on one of their kind. She knew the Iriomkat council would have forbidden it and doing it this way prevented another future headache with both councils by simply taking action herself on the issue. She had a right as Demon's sister, anyway. A funeral would be held in secret within a few days.

The rather ambiguous report sat hard in her stomach but she really had no choice. The good that came out of this, if one could call it that, was a serious omega was finally dead. The city council would be thrilled about that and the fact a dangerous new enemy, an Iriomkat rogue was also dead.

She wished this all could be put on hold until she had time to deal with her emotions but as soon as her report reached the Mayor she was called to the council chambers.

Nearly dragging her feet in reluctance, Dena went to city hall in her male disguise. The meeting was being held rather earlier than was usual for the council. It was obvious they were still concerned about what they called the 'Iriomkat Situation'. She grimaced at that mentally as she took her usual seat.

Ms. Briggs gave her a small smile of encouragement as she sat down next to Mayor Manx and the meeting began. She didn't return the smile but did nod at Callie. She could feel the council's eyes on her but ignored it.

Mayor Manx cleared his throat before speaking, "Commander Feral, your report on the rogue please."

Dena eyes flickered with pain for just a moment before she spoke in her usual brisk and commanding style. "The rogue Iriomkat and the omega known as Dark Kat killed each other in a battle for supremacy. Each had desired to bring a war to Megakat City. Dark Kat had apparently tried to instigate a falling out between Iriomkats and Kats for the purpose of taking over when the city was helpless. The rogue was just interested in getting rid of Kat kind or ruling over them. In a warehouse, two days ago, the rogue apparently used the warehouse that belonged to Dark Kat, without realizing it, to gather like-minded Iriomkats to his cause. Dark Kat had gone there to collect some weapons he had stored within. The two clashed, violently, and despite mine and the SWAT Kats interference, managed to kill each other. Dark Kat's identity has been verified and his body is in the morgue. The Iriomkats have retrieved the body of the deceased rogue for burial under Iriomkat laws."

The council went still and digested this information in silence. There were many a shocked look as they learned of the magnitude of the plan to destroy or enslave Megakat City. As soon as their shock passed, Feral was peppered with questions for more than an hour as they tried to squeeze out every detail.

Dena was quite used to this from her many press conferences and fielded the questions easily, even if many of them caused her pain. The only part of the questioning that began to pall on her was the constant refrain from some of the council about a possible chance of another rogue appearing. She finally got tired of it and put the council in their place on the subject.

"Of course such a thing could happen again just as our omegas continually reappear after we've vanquished them. That's the nature of evil. Neither Iriomkat nor Kats are immune from that type of behavior. But just as my enforcers fight off the omegas so will the Iriomkat hunters keep a sharp eye for rogues." Dena said bluntly and forcefully.

"Commander Feral is correct. All we can do is be alert to danger as we've always done. So far our enemies have failed to defeat us and we still flourish. Don't forget the Iriomkats have been among us helping us fight that battle as well." Calico Briggs jumped in with her support.

"Also remember, there are other more formidable enemies out there. The Pastmaster and Dr. Viper are much more deadlier than we are." Dena added.

The council, especially Mrs. Roday, went quiet as they absorbed that reminder of the city's precarious situation against the omegas that plagued them regularly.

After a long pregnant pause, Mrs. Roday spoke. "You're right, Commander. We had forgotten that we're under constant attack by those mutant horrors. I guess we just allowed ourselves to be frightened by ancient stories about Iriomkats but as you said Ms. Briggs, they really aren't a threat to Kat kind anymore than we are to them in these modern times. It's time to set aside that bigotry and welcome them openly to our society that they already live within."

Many of the diehards still argued a little longer but their objections had lost a lot of steam and were overruled by the majority of the council. After all the objections had been dealt with, the subject of drawing up an agreement between Iriomkats and Katkind was discussed. Several exhausting hours went by until a draft agreement was finally drawn up. A future meeting with the city council and the Iriomkat Elders was tentatively set up. Dena was charged with getting a more firm date set. Finally the council meeting was adjourned.

Relieved the meeting was over, Dena sighed and prepared to leave but then remembered she had to do this all over again with her elders. Rubbing her eyes tirededly, she momentarily allowed her shields to fall slightly.

Suddenly a wash of agonizing pain, guilt, sorrow, anguish, and worry poured into her from her mate nearly making her cry out loud. She shut the link quickly and hurriedly left the council chambers to hide the unshed tears in her eyes. She encountered no one as she jumped aboard an empty elevator and punched the button for the lobby.

By the time she reached the first floor, she had gotten her emotions under control and made for her car. Starting her engine, she maneuvered into traffic and headed for Club Imrie. She knew a meeting had been planned with the Elders to begin whenever the city council meeting was over. She had pulled out her cell phone while she drove and called to say she was on the way.

She reached the club some twenty minutes later and parked her car in the lot next to several others. Walking toward the club, she allowed her disguise to fall. It was well past noon, the city council meeting having taken half the day, as she stepped into the club that was now run by Rick alone. The memory of Zachary's betrayal made her heart tighten with pain. He was still in a cell awaiting the council's judgment.

Rick was cleaning the bar and spotted her. He waved as Dena walked toward him. When she reached the bar she stopped and looked closely at him.

"How are you doing, Rick?" She asked him, softly

"As well as can be expected, all things considered. But the more important question is, how are you doing?" Rick asked gently, tilting his head to peer at her.

Dena blushed and turned her head away, not willing to let Rick see her pain. "I'm okay!" Her voice small and uncertain.

Rick sighed and came around the bar. He put a gentle arm around her shoulders. "No you're not. I can tell. We have been friends a very long time, remember?"

"Yes." She sighed, looking up at him with a sad smile. "Sorry, I really don't want to talk about it, please."

He looked sad but didn't argue. "Dena, you can't keep this inside. You need to talk to someone if I'm not the one who can help. I'm sure there's someone you trust enough to be open with besides your mate. Please promise me you'll speak with someone. This kind of pain can eat at you and its not healthy." Rick said urgently.

"No, I can't talk about it! It....its not...." She tried to explain then clamped her mouth shut as once more strong feelings of anger, regret, grief, and pain surged through her.

"Easy, Dena. It's okay.....just calm down.....that's it....take slow deep breathes." Rick tried to soothe her, hugging her carefully.

It took several minutes, but finally, Dena got control of her galloping emotions. Taking a deep breath, she said calmly, "I need to speak with the Elders, they are waiting for me."

"Okay, just promise me you'll speak to someone soon." Rick said quietly as he released her.

"I won't make any promises." Dena muttered then walked quickly away and headed for the storeroom. She went through the secret door and down the stairs to the meeting room. She gave a small nod to the guards outside the door and she went in.

The Elders were already sitting at their council table as she walked across the room to face them.

"Welcome, Dena. When you are ready, please give us your report." Elder Jade said quietly. She could see the pain in Dena's eyes. Jade realized that whatever the young Iriomkat had to say, the event had caused her sorrow.

Dena nodded and repeated the same report she gave the city council except she gave the true facts of what happened rather than the edited version except for one thing.

"My brother, Demon, felt unrelenting hatred toward Katkind for the deaths of his mate and our parents. He captured Bruce Anwar to force him to break my bond with T-Bone. Demon was unaware the warehouse he was using was already being utilized by Dark Kat. The omega had been planning to cause a war between Iriomkats and Katkind so that he could take over in the aftermath. He had suggested to Demon that they join forces. That infuriated my brother and he attacked Dark Kat. They fought and both were killed." Dena said tightly. Even now, she could not tell them her mate had actually been the one to kill her brother. She didn't feel the Elders needed to know this.

There was a long silence after she'd finished. Except for Oliver, the council felt Dena's pain at the loss of her only family.

"Then you are the last, Dena…" Jade said finally.

"Yes, but I know my mate will take my name to continue the family line. So it won't end with me." Dena said quietly.

"That's good to know. We would hate to have to take your family book of spells." Jade said with a sigh of relief.

Dena just nodded.

"So, tell us how the city council handled the news and what their response was in regards to us." Jade asked, solemnly.

"It took awhile to convince them but they wish to put an end to the fear and bigotry. To that end they have drawn up a draft agreement to lay down rules of how Iriomkat and Kat kind will exist from now on. I'm to get a firm date for a meeting for you and the city council to go over this agreement and ratify it." Dena said.

"Well, that's good news." David said leaning back in his seat.

"Indeed it is. But things will need to been taken slowly and we need to go over what rules we'll accept." Roy said thoughtfully

"You are right, Roy. Now, there is just one more subject that needs to be covered before we end this meeting." Serena said unhappily. "The matter of Zachary Bishop."

"Yes that's right. Dena, we would like your take on why Zachary did this terrible thing." Jade said.

Dena swallowed painfully. This was a very difficult thing to talk about. "I.....Zachary was very much in love with me, I discovered. We've always been friends but I wasn't aware of how strong his feelings had become. He was very upset to learn I was mated to T-Bone. When Demon apparently found out about how he felt, he suggested Zachary help him find a way to break the bonding. Zachary planned to help me through the breaking of the bond and then offer himself as my new mate. It was Zachary who captured Bruce and his family and took my mate captive." Dena said tightly.

The Elders were shocked and angry. They argued among themselves as Dena stood before them trying not to listen. Finally, Serena called them to order.

"We will have to discuss this and speak with Zachary as well before we decide punishment. What he did was nearly unforgivable, but strong emotions do tend to make people do the wrong thing." Serena sighed.

"Please, he was always a good tom. He just let his emotions and desires overrule his common sense. He's very sorry for what he did. As the wronged party, I beg leniency for him. He should be punished but please use mercy." Dena pleaded softly.

Looking at her fellow Elders, Serena could see they were divided on this. Sighing, she turned her attention back to Dena. "We will consider it, Dena."

"Thank you." Dena said humbly.

The Elders talked among themselves about this development before Serena called a halt to it and said it would be addressed at a later date. Meanwhile, they needed to decide on what they wanted to see in the agreement with the city and set a date to meet. This went on for a couple of hours while Dena took a seat and waited, closing her eyes and resting. Finally, they got her attention and gave her a date for the joint meeting.

Jade looked kindly at Dena and said for the council, "Thank you, Dena. We are truly sorry for your loss and the terrible things you've gone through."

"Thank you." Dena said softly.

"This concludes the emergency meeting of the Elders." Serena said. There were smiles and looks of relief on the Elders faces as they rose to leave. Peace with Katkind looked to be within their grasp at last.

Before Dena could escape, Serena stopped her with a gentle call. Dena looked over to where the Elder was and saw her gesture her to come with her. Dena sighed heavily but walked over to Serena and they went into the room where the Elders held their private discussions and did their voting. Serena closed and locked the door behind her and gestured for Dena to have a seat in one of the many padded chairs.

Dena reluctantly did so as Serena did the same just across from her.

"Dena, I have this feeling that you were withholding pertinent information in your report. Something happened you weren't willing to tell the rest of the Elders." She said with certainty.

Dena blinked and glanced at the closed door.

"Don't worry. This room is heavily warded. No one will hear us nor interrupt." Serena assured her.

Dena relaxed and looked down at the floor, saying nothing for a long while. Serena waited patiently. When the troubled young female was ready, Serena would be there to listen.

After taking a deep breath, Dena started speaking in a soft voice but by the time she reached the part where her brother had tried to break her bond then tried to kill her mate, she broke down completely. She sob wildly, screamed in anguish and cursed as she recalled that terrible day.

When most of her anger burned out, Serena moved closer and gathered the sobbing female into her arms and rubbed her back soothingly.

She sighed mentally. Serena well understood why Dena was in such turmoil. She wasn't sure what to feel about the loss of her brother at the paws of her mate. Dena knew her brother was wrong but that didn't stop her loving him even when he threatened her. But she also couldn't blame her mate for saving his own life. His loss would have wounded her terribly. But still she couldn't reconcile the death and didn't know if she should blame Demon or T-Bone for what had happened.

"Have you spoken with your mate about how he feels about that night?" Serena asked quietly, making Dena look at her.

Tear-filled eyes stared at her. "No....I....I haven't been able to stand having him near me or ....." She couldn't continue.

"Dena, he's your mate! He is most likely in just as much pain as you are. Blocking him only makes the pain of your loss and his guilt more intense." Serena chided her gently. "Why are you doing it?"

"Because I don't want to feel or hear him!" Dena said almost heatedly.

"Do you blame him for what happened?"

"No!"

"Do you blame Demon?"

"No."

"Do you blame yourself?" Serena continued to press.

"Yes…no…I don't know! I keep thinking if only I had been more aware of Demon's feelings I might have been able to ease my brother's pain and find a way to have someone help him get over his hatred. That night, I hardly recognized him. That he would hurt me was a shock. That he would try to break my bond was more than I could handle and I didn't see it coming soon enough to prevent him from trying to kill my mate. So many things I could have done to prevent this final disaster. All the things I should have done would have kept T-Bone from being nearly killed and forcing him to kill.....something he's never done before and now will carry for the rest of his life...and then there's the mess with Zachary.....I....." Dena spilled out all her recriminations and guilt before being halted by Serena.

"Stop it, Dena. Hindsight is a useless activity. Do you remember what I said to you that night?" Serena asked her firmly.

"I.....yes." Dena said meekly.

"I warned you that whatever happened it wouldn't be your fault. You should not blame yourself, your mate, your best friend, or your brother. Fate can be cruel and in this instance it took your brother's life but destiny can be kind, and your mate is what you've been given to ease your loss." Serena said wisely.

Dena stared at Serena then down at the floor. Serena released her and gave her one last word of advice.

"Talk to your mate! He's hurting, Dena. Knowing what kind of kat he is, you know he wouldn't do the same to you. Open the bond and heal."

"Thank you, Serena." All her guilt seem to melt away and ease finally. She felt much lighter now. "I will speak with T-Bone." Dena promised.

Serena got up but placed a paw on Dena's shoulder, "If there's ever a time you feel the need to talk to someone, you know you can go to T-Bone, Rick or I."

Dena stood up and hugged the older Iriomkat, " Thank you, Serena. You've always been like a second mother to me."

Serena smiled at Dena wordlessly, hugging her back. They broke off and headed out the door and into the main room again. There, Dena bid Serena goodbye then headed out. She waved good night to Rick but didn't stop to talk to him as she headed outside the club.

It was evening now, as she walked to her car and drove out of the parking lot. Feeling drained emotionally, she quickly made her way home. Parking her car in the garage below her apartment, she locked her vehicle and made for the elevator.

As she walked down the hall to her apartment, she tried to think of a way to contact her mate without opening the bond to do it. She needed to be physically with him before she could do that.

She ran through her mind how she would find him. Contacting him by enforcer radio was out since she didn't want anyone to be suspicious of why she wanted to talk to him. At her door, she unlocked it and walked in, closing and locking it behind her. Her mind still working on the problem, she stripped her coat off and her weapon, putting them away. She shoved her boots off and placed them in the closet.

Distracted, she moved down the short hallway to her bedroom. She was nearly all the way in when she realized her mate was already there.

She halted in shock and stared at T-Bone who sat on the end of her bed looking down at the floor. His ears were completely flat to his head in misery. He look tired, troubled, nervous, and confused as he just sat there not noticing that Dena was even there.

With a soft cry of sorrow, she opened the bond wide and reached out for T-Bone. She was immediately hit with the same emotions she was feeling. She flung herself to his side and wrapped her arms around him.

T-Bone head jerked reflexively when the bond opened and he was struck by his mate's pained emotions that echoed his own. When she threw herself against him, he automatically opened his arms to hold her tight.

As their minds poured their pain and sorrow back and forth, T-Bone was saying aloud, "Dena....oh Dena.....my love..... I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please, please forgive me! I never meant to kill him!" He choked.

"I know, I know." Dena sobbed back, hugging him tighter, "I can feel how much this hurts you. You've never had to kill before and I'm sorry you had to. I forgive you! I love you!"

They cried tears of need and sorrow for what was lost. T-Bone buried his face in his mate's neck as did Dena to him. It was some time before they were cried out.

Dena finally pulled away to kiss T-Bone deeply. She wanted him to stop focusing on what was and to turn his attention on just the two of them. Tears still ran down their cheeks as they took comfort in each other.

_"My love, let's go take a shower, eat something and go to bed. We're both so very tired."_ Dena said in his mind.

_"Good idea, love. I'm exhausted."_ T-Bone muttered back the same way.

Helping each other to undress, T-Bone became Chance as he pulled his mask off, then they stumbled off to the shower and washed away their grief and tears. Going to the kitchen, Dena prepared simple sandwiches and warm milk. They took them to the living room and sat close as they ate. They didn't speak, just leaned against each other quietly.

Chance collected their dishes and took them to the sink. He returned to her and pulled her to her feet, wrapping an arm around her waist as they walked back to the bedroom, flicking the living room light off as they passed and made for the bed.

They climbed in and he rolled to his side, pulling her close. They cuddled tightly until exhausted sleep finally took them down into the peaceful dark.


End file.
